Central Retail made just over 5 billion baht in core profit in the first half of 2026. That is 42.5% more than it made in the same six months last year.
Revenue for the half came to 126.6 billion baht, up 2.4%.
The second quarter did most of the work. Revenue rose 3.5% to 60.1 billion baht. Core profit from continuing operations more than doubled to 2.11 billion.
Chief financial officer Panet Mahankanurak put the quarter down to two things. The group kept opening and upgrading stores, and it widened its margins at the same time.
It managed its brand and product mix more tightly. It pushed its own private labels and kept a firmer grip on stock.
New branches opened during the quarter at Central malls in Khon Kaen and at Central Campus and Central Northville. They included Tops, SuperSport, KIS, CMG brand shops, PowerBuy, B2S, OfficeMate and AutoOne.
Beauty is where the group is pushing hardest at younger shoppers. Both LOOKS and KIS are being rolled out as standalone stores rather than counters inside larger ones.
The company also launched a Japanese bakery brand called Haruki. It began developing TOPS DAILY Hybrid stores that fold in its PET N’ ME and TOPS CARE formats.
Spending by tourists held up better than the wider market suggested it would. Sales to that group grew more than 9% in the quarter, against a slowdown across the industry.
The 1, the group’s loyalty programme, is now at roughly 30 million members. About 23 million of those are in Thailand and around 7 million in Vietnam.
Central Retail also held its AA- credit rating with a stable outlook for a fourth year in a row.
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Source: Thansettakij
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