Eurodisney hit by cold weather, weak economies

The Eurodisney theme park near Paris took a cold shower from bad weather early this year and from the effects of economic crisis in southern Europe, it said on Tuesday. From April to June, the third-quarter of the company's financial year, group sales fell by 1.7 percent to 352.1 million euros ($467 million). The company, which operates the Disneyland Paris theme park and related hotels and property interests, said that it was cautious about the outlook for the last quarter of its year. Attendance at the attractions had been depressed by the "difficult" economic climate, particularly in southern Europe and to a lesser extent by unfavourable weather in France.However, in the first nine months of its year, sales advanced owing to a rise of 2.8 percent in the first six months. In addition, spending per visitor rose. The group also benefited from strong property activities for which sales rose from 1.7 million euros to 6.8 million euros owing to a big property deal in the first quarter. The price of shares in the company was showing a loss of 3.24 percent to 4.78 euros in morning trading. The overall CAC 40 index was up 0.18 percent. At Saxo Banque, analyst Andrea Tueni commented that the sales figures fell short of expectations and that the economic climate was difficult for the leisure sector in general. However, on a broader perspective, sales had risen and the results contained some reassuring factors, she said.