Ramayana's 9-month sales rise

Ramayana's 9-month sales rise

Naila Firdausi, Bloomberg/Jakarta

PT Ramayana Lestari Sentosa, Indonesia's second-largest retailer, said its nine-month sales rose 16 percent as it opened more stores and demand increased in the mining areas of the country.

Sales in the period ended Sept. 30 rose to Rp 2.68 trillion (US$266 million) from Rp 2.32 trillion a year earlier, Lukito Gozali, Ramayana's investor relation officer, said in a telephone interview. Sales in the July to September quarter grew 21 percent to Rp 1.08 trillion. Nine-month profit will be announced by the end of this month, Ramayana said.

"Same-store growth rose 8 percent, boosted by demand in industrial areas, like the coal-mining region," Gozali said. "New stores also helped us exceed the target." Ramayana said nine- month sales exceeded its target by Rp 173 billion.

Ramayana opened 11 new stores this year, compared with six last year, betting economic growth will boost spending, Gozali said. Consumer demand in mining areas is increasing as higher oil prices prompt Indonesian coal miners to boost output. Crude oil prices rose 33 percent in the year ended Sept. 30.

PT Bumi Resources, Indonesia's biggest coal exporter, said in August sales would at least rise 10 percent to 39.7 million tons of coal this year.

Indonesia's economy, Southeast Asia's biggest, may grow as much as 6 percent this year, the government said, the fastest in nine years. The economy grew 5.1 percent last year.

Profit will probably rise 10 percent this year to Rp 343 billion on sales that may increase to Rp 4.23 trillion, Ramayana said in August.

"We are still keeping our sales target for this year, expecting demand during the Lebaran season," Gozali said.

Indonesian Muslims, making up 85 percent of the country's 238 million people, will celebrate Eid al-Fitr festival, known locally as Lebaran, next month to mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.

Muslims typically travel to their hometowns for an annual pilgrimage marked by meals and acts of charity, boosting consumer sales.