Indonesian home improvement chains post mixed results

Four listed home improvement chains in Indonesia posted mixed results for their sales in the first half of the year, with most posting slight movements either way and one posting a double-digit rise in its top line.

Market leader PT Aspirasi Hidup Indonesia, formerly Ace Hardware Indonesia, retained its top spot, earning the most for the period, though the sales rise slowed down three per cent to 4.197 tn Indonesian rupiah (IDR, EUR 214.8 mio) - a softening that the company has not seen in at least a year. The company, which has renamed its outlets Azko, attributed the slowdown to a weakening of same store sales in the second quarter, which followed a quarter that was buoyed by festive spending.  

"Soft purchasing power persisted post-Lebaran in Q2, leading to weak [same store sales] across regions. The nationwide [same store sales] for the [first month] recorded at -2.9 per cent…