Supermarket giant Tesco has reported its first fall in profits in nearly 20 years.
It made stg£1.7 (€2.12) billion in pre-tax profits in the 6 months to August.
That is a drop of around 12% on the same period last year.
The underlying profit for the group before tax is also down 8.5% to stg£1.8 (€2.24) billion.
However it adds that group sales are up 1.4% with group sales excluding petrol up 1.6%.
Philip Clarke is Chief Executive of the Tesco Group.
“The external environment continues to present challenges all over the world” he said.
“Whilst our businesses in Asia and Europe have continued to do a great job for customers, our financial performance there reflects the tough economic backdrop and particularly the regulatory changes in South Korea”.
“That we have gained or held market share in the majority of markets is a testimony to the skill of our teams across the Group” he added.
Tesco entered the Irish market in 1997 and has 137 stores here.
Irish exports to the worldwide Tesco Group represents 9% of the total value of Irish food and drink exported in 2010, the company says.
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