Supermarket group Ahold booked net profit of €196m in the first three months of this year, 25% down on the first quarter of 2008, the company said in a statement.

Ahold said the figures had been dampened by higher taxes and a €66m provision against a unit which has since been sold off. Operating income rose 18%.
As announced earlier this month, group sales were up 15% to €8.7bn.
‘We continued to make good progress with our strategy for profitable growth. We had strong sales and solid margins in the Netherlands and the United States, despite the challenging economic environment,’ CEO John Rishton said in a statement.