Lower revenues are a consequence of the closure of certain unprofitable units and the transfer of a part of the retail network in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina to Croatian retailer Konzum, the company said on Monday.

A high level of competition and the deteriorating economic situation that changed consumer habits also affected the result. Revenues are still in line with plans on all key markets except Croatia and Bosnia's Banja Luka, Mercator added.

The number of employees in the group in the January-September period decreased by 4.6% year-on-year to 21,017, according to a report published on the website of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange.

The Mercator group spent EUR 15.9m on investment in the first nine months of the year, which is on part with last year's investments in the same period. Most of the funds were invested in upgrades of the existing retail network.