Countdown 1H earnings fall as loyalty, quake costs mount

Tue, 21 Feb 2017

By Rebecca Howard Feb. 22 (BusinessDesk) - The Countdown supermarket chain posted a 4.5 percent drop in first-half earnings due to a strategy of investing in team hours, costs of a new loyalty alliance with AA Smartfuel and uninsured losses related to the November earthquake. Earnings before interest and tax fell to $163 million in the 27 weeks to Jan. 1 from $170.6 million in the previous year, its ASX-listed parent company Woolworths announced. Sales were $3.23 billion versus $3.18 billion in the prior corresponding period, up 1.6 perce...

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