Johannesburg - Massmart Holdings, the South African unit of Stores, said on Tuesday its first-half earnings rose by as much as 57%, lifted by favourable exchange rates.
Massmart said in a statement it expected headline earnings of between 218 and 234 cents per share for the 26 weeks to June 23, compared with 148.9 cents a year earlier.
Headline EPS, the main measure of profit in , excludes certain one-time items.
However, Massmart said that before adjusting for currencies, earnings would be as much as 15% lower than the previous year's currency-adjusted 200.6 cents.
Massmart, which earns about 7% of its annual revenue outside of , said it would give greater details about the results when it releases interim earnings on August 22.
Separately, the chairperson of 's Naivas told Reuters on Tuesday the retailer was in talks to sell a majority stake to Massmart. Massmart declined to comment on the Naivas stake.