Find out why Dairy Farm scrambled to operate mini-marts in Malaysia

The first store will open in June.

According to CIMB, Dairy Farm released its interim management statement covering the period 1 Jan-14 May. Earnings were marginally lower yoy due to weaker margins in Malaysia in the face of more promotions, lower supplier income and cost pressures.

Operations in Singapore were sluggish, affected by higher opex. These were offset by Hong Kong, with robust results from Wellcome supermarkets and further
improvements at Mannings HK.

Here's more from CIMB:

Additionally, sales growth in Indonesia was good for the all formats. However, Indonesian earnings were flat due to a jump in minimum wages and a weaker exchange rate.

PT Hero, Dairy Farm’s Indonesian vehicle, has announced a rights issue to raise up to US$358m, to support its expansion plans and repay debts in Indonesia.

Earnings growth for the group's IKEA operations in Hong Kong and Taiwan was satisfactory. Restaurant associate, Maxim's, also maintained its good performance.

We were not entirely surprised by the stiffening competition in Malaysia, especially as new entrant, Aeon, seeks to consolidate its position.

To counter this and complement its Giant hypermarkets, Dairy Farm has formed a JV with an undisclosed party to operate mini-marts in Malaysia. The first store is expected to open in Jun this year.