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METRO

France sale boosts Metro earnings

The pending sale of its loss-making French division has boosted the profits at Metro International, the Swedish publisher of free newspapers, the firm reported on Monday.

Published: 18 July 2011 15:44 CEST
France sale boosts Metro earnings

Metro confirmed that France’s TF1 network is the buyer of its French division.

“The due diligence is currently being carried out and subject to the outcome the deal is likely to be completed in the near future,” it said.

Excluding Metro France and Metro Hungary, which the Swedish company sold in June, Metro’s net profit in the second quarter was €2.83 million ($3.98 million), against a €477,000 for the April – June period a year earlier.

Including those discontinued units, the company suffered a net loss of €734,00 euros, against a profit of €477,000 last year.

Sales (excluding the discontinued units), were up 17 percent to €55 million.

Metro France dragged down the company’s numbers because of a €1.26 million operating loss attributable to a cost-cutting plan to fight competition from French dailies 20 Minutes and Direct Matin/Soir.

TF1, a private company and France’s largest broadcaster, has since 2003 held 34.3 percent of Metro France.

Metro said Latin America was a priority expansion market. It has six editions in the region.

Metro launched the world’s free daily in Sweden in 1995 and is now published in over 100 cities in 20 countries.

Its main markets are France (2.4 million readers), the Netherlands (1.71 million readers), Russia (1.57 million), Italy and Sweden.

Metro has some 17.13 million readers.

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METRO

The Paris transport works that could disrupt your summer

Every year, major engineering works take place on the capital's public transport network in July and August, when Parisians flee the city for their summer holidays. Here’s the lines affected this year.

Published: 23 June 2021 13:35 CEST
The Paris transport works that could disrupt your summer
Photo: Ludovic MARIN / AFP.

Metro

The most significant changes to Metro lines will take place on line 6. The line will be closed between Montparnasse-Bienvenüe and Trocadéro throughout July and August, and the Nationale station will remain closed until the end of August. Replacement bus services will be available but will add time to your journey.

The Mairie des Lilas stop will also be inaccessible from June 26th, so line 11 line will end at Porte des Lilas until August 29th.

There will also be disruption on line 14, with no trains running between Gare de Lyon and Olympiades from July 25th until August 22nd, as work takes place to extend the line to Paris Orly Airport.

RER

Services on the RER A line will be suspended between Auber and the Université, Cergy and Poissy stations from June 26th until August 29th, every day from 9pm and all day on weekends.

From August 9th to 13th, and August 16th to 20th,  services will be suspended all day between Auber and La Défense, and no trains will be running to or from Poissy.

Frequent work is planned on RER B, which will affect journeys between the city centre and Charles de Gaulle and orly airports. There will be no services between Aulnay-sous-Bois and Charles de Gaulle 2 Airport on the weekend of June 26th-27th, or any day after 11pm from July 1st until August 27th. There will however be a replacement bus.

Services between Charles de Gaulle terminals 1 and 2 will also be suspended on July 3rd and 4th. Likewise for journeys between Gare du Nord and Charles de Gaulle 2 on August 14th and 15th.

Improvements take place during the summer, when public transport is less crowded. Photo: Aurore MESENGE / AFP.

The Luxembourg stop meanwhile will be closed throughout the whole of July. As will the Fontaine-Michalon station to the south of Paris from June 28th to July 23rd, and Denfert-Rochereau every weekend from July 24th until August 22nd.

The RER C will also see its share of engineering works, with no trains running between Pontoise and Avenue Henri Martin on weekdays after 9:30pm, from July 1st until July 13th.

There is greater disruption to come on weekends from July 15th to August 21st. Services will be suspended between Musée d’Orsay and Pontoise, Saint-Quentin en Yvelines and Versailles Château Rive Gauche, and Massy – Palaiseau and Pont de Rungis Aéroport d’Orly.

Tram

Most tramlines will be unaffected by works, but there will still be interruptions in certain areas. Notably, the stretch of the T3b line from Porte de Vincennes to Delphine Seyrig will be blocked between July 3rd and 9th.

Full details of the disruption can be found on the RATP website.

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