Canadian Tire 2Q net earnings drop 20.3%

TORONTO Canadian Tire posted second-quarter net earnings of $93 million, or $1.14 a basic share, from $116.7 million, or $1.43 a share, in the same period a year earlier.

The company said it expects earnings per share for 2008 to be in the range of $4.52 to $4.81, falling below earlier estimates of $4.90 to $5.14.

The company said retail sales at its core Canadian Tire and PartSource stores rose 1.5% to $2.01 billion, while same0store sales were down 0.5%.

According to the company, retail sales across all categories were hurt by the sluggish economy, while seasonal leisure items were particularly soft due to cold, wet weather in May and June.

($1 = $1.05 Canadian)