Consolidated sales of the 1st semester of 2004 went up by 14,6%, compared to last year's respective period, reaching 58,7 million euros. For the parent company the sales for the same period reached 51,6 million euros, increasing by 8,4%.

This expansion in sales is in line with the already disclosed estimations of the Group's Management and is not affected by any seasonality effects, as was the case for the 1st Quarter sales. The growth in sales is attributed to the successful strategic decisions of the last years and mainly to the extension of the retail store chain, which now comprises 77 points of sale and to the expansion of the Factory Outlet discount superstore.

Consolidated pre-tax earnings reached 13,3 million euros, while for the parent company the same figure amounted to 11,7 million, exhibiting a growth rate of 95,6% and 80% respectively compared with the previous year.

It was mostly the rising share price of Hellenic Duty Free Shops S.A., of which Elmec Sport is a stakeholder and less notably the growing sales and the satisfactory profit margin, that contributed to the significant growth of the pre-tax profits. More specifically, the net financial income changed from a loss of 4,8 million euros last year to a net profit of 868 thousand euros this year, thus boosting total pre-tax earnings.