China Retail Giant Gome Publishes First Half Profits

According to the half-yearly report from Gome, although affected by the May 12 earthquake in the second quarter of 2008, the electrical retailer still made net profits of CNY1.15 billion in the first half of 2008, nearly double that for the same period in 2007.

By June 30, 2008, the revenue of Gome Electrical Appliance was about CNY24.874 billion, a year-on-year increase of 17.57%; the gross profit was CNY2.375 billion, a year-on-year increase of 22.3%; the operating profit was CNY1.272 billion, a year-on-year increase of 42.28%; and the net profit was CNY1.15 billion, a year-on-year increase of 191.14%.

In the first half of 2008, Gome opened its first stores in 16 Chinese cities and the total number of its newly opened stores was 102. By June 30, 2008, the retail network of Gome had covered 198 cities with 828 stores.