Russian supermarket

Magnit has announced that net retail revenue jumped 33.4 per cent during the first half of 2009 to hit R78.5bn (€1.7bn), boosted by the launch of 226 new stores in Russia through the six-month period.

Like-for-like sales rose 10.2 per cent during the half, a slowdown from 14.05 per cent in the first quarter of the year, Reuters reported.

In June, net sales jumped 28.2 per cent to hit R13.4bn (€293.2m), down from a growth rate of 30.5 per cent in May.

The group now operates 2,808 stores in Russia, more than any other domestic grocery retailer.