Carrefour sales boosted by Latin America

Europe's biggest retailer Carrefour has reported a 3.2 percent rise in underlying first quarter sales, beating analysts' expectations. The retailer posted total sales of €21 billion helped by strong growth in Latin America.

Sales in its home market of France rose 2.5 percent, with sales at its hypermarkets - which account for nearly a quarter of group revenues - up 2.1 percent.

However, Carrefour performed less well in China, where sales fell by 13 percent.

The company said sales in China suffered from an "environment that continued to be marked by frugal consumption".

The retailer has had problems in Asia before. It shut down its operations in India last year, and withdrew from Singapore in 2012.

However, there was better news from Latin America, with like-for-like sales up 26.1 percent in Argentina and 8.4 percent higher in Brazil.

Carrefour confirmed it would continue with its plan to float its Brazilian business on the stock market later in the year.