A
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Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains
The objective of the law, which was approved by the Bundesrat on 25 June 2021 and will enter into force in Germany on 1 January 2023, is to improve the protection of human rights and environmental standards in global supply chains. It sets out clear due diligence requirements for companies based in Germany to comply with basic human rights and environmental standards (for example prohibition of child and forced labour).
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Audit
A procedure that assesses an organisation’s processes and structures according to previously formulated standards and guidelines. For example, an audit provides information on the effectiveness of process optimisation measures. If an audit is conducted by an external auditor, the certificate issued after the review can be used as evidence of adherence to standards.
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Availability of goods
This is one of the key figures that METRO uses to measure and check the implementation status of the sCore strategy. The key figure indicates whether an item to be sold to the customer is physically in stock. It is calculated as the aggregate proportion of active items in METRO countries that are in stock at the end of the day relative to the total number of active items for the day (excluding ultra-fresh, tobacco and petrol). An item is considered active if it is expected to be available for sale in the stores at the given time.
C
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Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)
The unaffiliated organisation was founded in London in 2000. It aims to disclose companies’ CO2-emissions as well as their climate risks, thereby contributing to the transparency of their corporate financial reporting on climate-relevant data. In addition, the CDP conducts annual company surveys.
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Commercial Paper Programme
Ongoing capital market programme typical of money markets that covers short-term financing needs. It facilitates the issuance of commercial papers (CP) as discounted, unsecured bearer bonds without standardised terms of maturity.
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Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO)
US-based private-sector organisation that developed and published a standard for internal controls in 1992 that is recognised by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In 2004, this standard was updated and the COSO ERM (Enterprise Risk Management – Integrated Framework), also known as COSO II, was published.
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Compliance
All measures specifying compliance with legal requirements as well as social guidelines and values by a company and its employees.
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Currency effects
Currency effects arise when the same number of currency units is converted into another currency at different exchange rates.
D
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Diversity management
Key element of the human resources policy, with the task of promoting social, cultural and ethnic diversity among employees and using it for the good of the company.
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Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI)
An index family that measures the sustainability of the company. The measurement is comprised of economic, environmental and social criteria. For listed companies, the focus is on corporate management, employee policy and transparency, compliance with human rights and risk management. Among all sustainability indices, the DJSI family carries a particular cachet in terms of quality.
E
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EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes)
Profit or loss before financial result and (income) taxes. Due to its independence from different forms of financing and tax systems, this key figure is also used for international comparison with other companies, among other things.
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EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation)
Profit or loss before financial result, income taxes, depreciation/amortisation/impairment losses/reversals of impairment losses on property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and investment properties. This key figure serves the purpose of comparing companies with accounting systems that follow different accounting rules. The (adjusted) EBITDA indicates EBITDA excluding earnings contributions from real estate transactions and transformation costs.
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EU Taxonomy
Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088, also known as the EU Taxonomy, and the delegated acts adopted in this regard, provide a framework defining which economic activities are considered environmentally sustainable.
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EVA (Economic Value Added)
Value-oriented key figure that depicts the absolute value contribution of a company created in a single period under consideration of a risk-adjusted interest rate. It provides information on the difference between the company profit after tax and the cost of capital on the average capital employed.
F
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Fair value
Recognised fair value that would be received in return for the disposal of an asset or paid for the assignment of a debt in an ordinary transaction conducted between market participants on the assessment date.
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Food, non-food
Under the global term food, METRO summarises the following categories of goods: fresh foods, durable foods, nutrients, frozen foods and drinks of all kinds, as well as luxury foods, dietary supplements and pet food, but also detergents, cleansers and cleaning agents, which are sometimes also labelled as near-food. All other goods are considered non-food items.
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Franchising
Contractually regulated form of organisation in which the franchisor grants the independent franchisees from the Traders segment the right to distribute certain goods or services using a name or trademark of the franchisor. METRO offers a variety of franchise concepts in different countries.
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Free cash flow
Free cash flow represents the unrestricted funds generated throughout the financial year, which are primarily available for redemption of borrowings, distribution of dividends or for M&A activities. Free cash flow is calculated from cash flow from operating activities based on continuing operations plus divestments less investments (excluding financial investments), lease payments as well as net interest paid and other borrowing costs. The free cash flow defined in this manner can be derived directly from the cash flow statement.
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FSD (Food Service Distribution)
FSD (Food Service Distribution) is the channel that METRO developed in recent years to expand its offer in the B2B sector. In addition to its traditional store-based offering, METRO regularly supplies selected professional customers with food (and, in some cases, non-food) products via its FSD channel. METRO commits to deliver those products based on commercial and service agreements. With the FSD channel, METRO entered into the primary supply channel for professional HoReCa businesses, while tactically extending its reach to Traders customers in selected markets.
G
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Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)
The initiative was established in 2000 and is the world’s largest organisation for the improvement of food safety. The initiative promotes the establishment of international audits to evaluate food suppliers.
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GLOBALGAP
A private-sector organisation that certifies agricultural and aquacultural products. The standard for ‘good agricultural practice’ (GAP) resulted from an initiative of European retail companies.
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Governance management system
System for controlling all management and monitoring processes of a company. The METRO governance management system comprises the risk management system, the internal control system, the compliance management system and the internal auditing system.
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Governance
Statutory and factual regulatory framework for the management and supervision of a company.
H
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HoReCa
Short for hotel, restaurant and catering businesses. The HoReCa sector is one of METRO’s core customer groups and is one of the strategic customers under the sCore growth strategy.
I
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IASB (International Accounting Standards Board)
An independent international body with head offices in London that develops and continually revises the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
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IFRIC
Interpretation on IFRS prepared by the IFRS Interpretations Committee (or its predecessor) and approved by the IASB.
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IFRS 16 – leases
Standard adopted by the IASB in January 2016 regarding the handling of leases. Under the new rules (right-of-use model), lessees must recognise leases in most cases as rights of use and lease liabilities in the balance sheet.
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IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards)
Internationally applicable rules for financial reporting developed by the IASB.
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ISAE (International Standard on Assurance Engagements)
Standards for the procedure of auditors for assurance engagements published by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board and intended for uniform application worldwide.
M
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Mark-to-market valuation
Calculation of the fair value of financial instruments on the basis of market prices at a particular assessment date.
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Multichannel business model
Dovetailing the store-based wholesale stores, whose assortments are consistently aimed at professional customers, with the delivery business and digital solutions. By combining the pick-up and delivery business, we serve the different needs of our customers in the best possible way. The online marketplace METRO MARKETS expands our delivery solution to include non-food products with a focus on the needs of HoReCa customers. The multichannel business model enables METRO to offer its customers a holistic shopping experience as a business partner.
N
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Net debt
The net debt results from the balance of financial liabilities (including liabilities from leases), cash and cash equivalents plus financial investments. Financial investments include short-term bank deposits and liquid debt instruments that can be sold at short notice.
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Net Promoter Score (NPS)
Key figure that measures the success and customer satisfaction of a business. A standardised customer survey provides ratings from customers that can be used to determine a comparable cross-company measured value. The net promoter score (NPS) of strategic customers (HoReCa and Traders) in METRO countries is one of the main key figures that METRO uses to measure and verify the implementation status of the sCore strategy. The NPS is determined by subtracting the percentage of detractors from the percentage of supporters.
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Net working capital
The net working capital includes inventories, trade receivables and receivables due from suppliers included in the item other financial and non-financial assets. Trade liabilities are deducted from the total amount of these items.
O
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Own brands
Brand products with an attractive price/performance ratio developed by a retail company and protected by trademark law. The own brand sales share is one of the key figures that METRO uses to measure and verify the implementation status of the sCore strategy. It shows the share of own brand sales in total sales (based on the merchandise management system) excluding the segment Others.
P
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PY
Previous year Period of 12 months that is usually cited as a reference for statements in the annual report and refers to the financial year preceding the reporting year.
R
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Rating
In the financial sector, rating represents the systematic, qualitative measurement of creditworthiness. Ratings are expressed in various grades of creditworthiness. Well-known agencies that perform ratings are Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch.
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Return on Capital Employed (RoCE)
This key figure measures the Return on Capital Employed (RoCE = EBIT/average capital employed) in a certain period under review and allows for an assessment of the performance of the group’s individual segments.
S
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sCore strategy
METRO’s growth strategy, which is aligned to the year 2030. It highlights the group’s exclusive focus on wholesale.
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Sedex audit according to SMETA
Sedex, a data platform for transparency in the sustainability commitment of companies, provides SMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit), one of the world’s most frequently used concepts for social audits. The audit is focused on working conditions, occupational safety, environmental management and business ethics as well as respect for human rights and temporary employment.
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SME services
Abbreviation for small and medium-sized enterprise services. SME services stands for METRO’s strategic approach of offering customers customised solutions for the challenges of their business operations. In addition to food and non-food items, it includes professional services and digital solutions. By intertwining services and product ranges, METRO will be able to offer its customers a more comprehensive assortment and respond to their needs in a targeted manner.
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Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Under the title ‘Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’, the United Nations formulated political goals. They are addressed to the entire international community, to companies as well as to private individuals. The agenda includes 17 main objectives that take into account all 3 dimensions of sustainability: economic, social and environmental. METRO is aware of its responsibility and readily contributes to the achievement of the goals.
T
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Traders
The term ‘Traders’ at METRO refers to the customer group of independent resellers such as operators of small grocery stores and kiosks, street food vendors, gas stations and wholesalers. Traders are one of METRO’s core customer groups and are among the strategic customers under the sCore growth strategy.
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Transformation costs
Non-recurring expenses related to the focus on the wholesale business and the restructuring measures resulting from this realignment as well as with the closure of individual national subsidiaries. Such expenses are presented separately in the financial reporting as transformation costs.
W
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Weighted average cost of capital (WACC)
The WACC results from the weighted average of the cost rate for equity and borrowing, in each case based on a capital market-based derivation. The weighting is based on the equity and borrowing components of METRO measured at market prices.