Page 37 - BELRptSept18

9.2 Major corporate news 9.2.5 Retail corporate news
Eurotorg , the largest food retailer in Belarus with around a 20% market share, increased its retail sales by 11% year-on-year in the local currency, and by 4% y/y in dollars (due to depreciation of the Belarusian ruble) in April-June. "Active selling space expansion and still-good LFL sales dynamics contributed to 11% y/y retail sales growth in the local currency, which is level with the management's guidance," Sberbank CIB said in a research note. Like-for-like (LFL) sales grew 4.8% y/y in the second quarter of 2018. The company finally achieved positive LFL traffic dynamics of 1.3% y/y, while LFL ticket growth continued to gradually slow down, coming in at 3.5%, above the levels of food inflation in the country. The company will release the first half of 2018 IFRS results in the middle of September. The main focus will be on cash flow performance and leverage. The company also substantially accelerated its expansion program, with 107 new stores opened during the quarter, which brings the total to 627 stores. Selling space thus increased 7% y/y to 300k m2. The company's focus remains on the expansion of small stores in rural areas (average selling space of new stores was just 153 m2). In line with Eurotorg's strategy, 97% of new stores are in leased space.
9.2.10 Metallurgy & mining corporate news
State-owned Belarusian Steel Works (BMZ trademark) increased the export of products by 5.5% year-on-year in volume terms, to 1.14mn tonnes in January-June, the government's news agency BelTA reported on August 28. In money terms, the growth stood at 35% y/y ($724mn). The profitability of sales reached 9.7%. In July alone, the plant exported 182,000 tonnes of metal products worth over $112mn. The export growth made up 160% y/y in money terms and 140% y/y in volume terms. BMZ consists of four main production facilities (steel melting, rolling, pipe, steel cord and wire), infrastructure shops and administrative departments. Two running melting shops ramped up production capacity up to three mn tonnes of steel per year. Specifically, the melting shop #1 produces and casts common steel grades, melting shop #2 produces and casts construction and alloyed steel grades. There are three up-to-date electric arc furnaces (100 tonnes each) in the melting shops. Rolling is represented at the plant by two shops. Rolling shop #1 produces large and small rolled product, as well as wire rod. Rolling shop #2 (launched in September 2015) has state-of-the-art bar and wire rod rolling mill of total capacity 700,000 tonnes per year having the possibility to increase production up to 1mn tonne per year.
9.2.11 Other sector corporate news
The Belarusian Potash Company (BPC), the trading arm of state-owned miner Belaruskali, is going to propose raising the price of its new contract with China to $290 per tonne , the level of its recently signed deal with India.
"If the contract [with China] comes soon, the price of the contract, from our point of view, should be no less than the Indian price," the BPC's CEO Elena Kudryavets told Reuters on August 28, adding that the company will propose
37 BELARUS Country Report September 2018 www.intellinews.com