Metro Group Real does not expect to meet profitability targets

Metro Group-owned Real hypermarkets in Germany will not meet their profitability target this year as consumer spending remains weak, according to Real’s CEO Joël Saveuse. He said that the company will meet the 3% operating margin a year later, adding that Metro is still gaining market share in Germany. The chain’s revenue declined 0.7% at stores open at least a year in the first nine months of the year. That compares with the food market’s overall decline of 1.3% and a drop of 2.1% at other self-service supermarkets, Saveuse said. Metro had set a goal of reviving Real’s performance within two years and named former Carrefour manager Saveuse as head of the unit’s management board in 2007.