Increases for Kesko both at home and abroad

The hardware and building materials division of the Finnish Kesko group achieved gross sales of € 241.5 mio in the first quarter of 2004, which amounts to an increase of 44.3 per cent over the same period last year. The Rautia and K-rauta formats in Finland accounted for € 152.1 mio of the total, or growth of 12.0 per cent. The group recorded sales of € 89.4 mio in its markets abroad. This amounts to an increase of 183.7 per cent. A figure of 32.4 per cent was put on annual growth rates in Estonia. Sales to the amount of € 52.9 mio notched up by the company’s partner, Senukai, in Lithuania have been included for the first time.