By Lehlohonolo Lehana.

Photo Credit: CFOSA.

Pharmacy group Dis-Chem reported a 17.2% decline in half-year earnings on Friday, 3 November, hit by the constrained economic environment, higher interest rates and ongoing power cuts.

Dischem said it is satisfied with its performance during the period, "notwithstanding a tough trading environment". 

"The constrained economic environment, higher interest rates and costs associated with load-shedding have resulted in a weaker performance by the group over the prior comparative period." 

"In the current financial year, the Group has also been impacted by the base effects of the prior year's performance, which were distinctly different across the two halves of the year."

The first half of the prior year delivered a strong performance when compared to the second half of the last year, the retailer said. 

However, Dischem said it expects a more equal distribution of earnings across halves in the current financial year. 

The acquisitions of the warehouse properties resulted in a R72 million once-off gain from the release of the lease liability and right-of-use asset, which contributed to the stronger first-half performance in the prior year.

Dischem declared a gross interim cash dividend of 23.24 cents per share – a decrease of 17.3% from the comparable period.

The group's shares were down just over 2% in morning trading on Friday and have fallen more than 23% in the past 12 months.