Carrefour is making solid progress with its turnaround following strong first-half performances in European and Latin American.

The French grocer posted recurring operating profits of €726m (£513m) in the first half of 2015, up 2.6% year on year at constant exchange rates.

Total sales during the period increased to €37.7bn (£26.7bn) during the half, a solid organic sales growth of 2.9%.

In France, recurring operating profits fell 20.9% to €321m (£227m), but in its other European markets profits surged 244.3% surged to €122m (£86m).

Profits in France declined as expected because of an increase in property taxes, the effect of the Dia store integration and the transfer of shopping mall rental income to Carmilla.

Meanwhile, the grocer’s Latin America business continued to grow, with profits up 26.3% to €296m (£209m).

Improving offer and price

In a statement, the retailer said it was “staying the course” and the priorities it laid out for 2015 during its annual results in March have been “reaffirmed.

Priorities include improving its offer and price image, accelerating multi-format expansion, developing its multichannel offer and evolving its model in China.

Margins in China have been declining rapidly amid a “slowing consumption environment”.