Eschborn/Hamburg, 10 April 2003. Following yesterday’s meeting of its Supervisory Board, Deutsche EuroShop AG has announced an operating result of € 24.8 million for financial year 2002. This corresponds to an increase of 37% year-on-year (previous year: € 18.1 million). “We have exceeded our forecast result of € 22.1 million by € 2.7 million or 12%,” explained Executive Board member Jürgen Wundrack. In turn, the full amount of the unappropriated surplus of € 30 million is to be used to distribute a tax-free dividend. The Executive Board and the Supervisory Board intend to propose a dividend € 1.92 per share, as last year, to the Annual General Meeting on 18 June 2003 in Frankfurt.
Consolidated sales from rental income more than doubled to € 46.5 million as against the previous year (€ 22.7 million). EBITDA rose threefold from € 8.9 million to € 37 million and EBIT increased from € 3 million in the previous year to € 15.4 million.

These improvements in results are mainly due to the fact that the shoppingcenters in Wolfsburg, Wuppertal, and Viterbo (Italy) generated income for a full financial year for the first time. In addition, construction of the City-Point in Kassel and the Altmarkt-Galerie in Dresden was completed and both centres were opened in 2002. The Company also acquired an equity interest in Allee-Center in Hamm, which opened in 1992.

“Our shoppingcenters in central locations and at established sites, and the full occupancy rates for all retail floor spaces that we have achieved, are the main cornerstones of stable value growth by our properties,” explained Claus-Matthias Böge, member of the Executive Board of Deutsche EuroShop AG. He continued: “We also anticipate solid earnings growth as the result of long-term, index linked rental contracts. These factors form the foundation for a stable rise in our share price.”

In contrast to the general trend on the capital markets, the Company’s share price remained extremely stable compared with the previous year; the quoted price of € 31 on 31 December 2002, was € 0.50 over the closing price for 2001. This slight increase in the share price and the dividend of € 1.92 paid in June 2002 resulted in a year-on-year return of around 8%, whereas the DAX slid by around 44%.

Deutsche EuroShop AG aims to further intensify its dialogue with shareholders and other interested parties. In addition to the new-look Web site with its clearer information structure that went live in February 2003, the Company also recently published its own corporate governance guidelines based on the statutory regulations for public companies, which can be downloaded from the Web site.

The Executive Board has also stated that Deutsche EuroShop AG will continue its dividend policy and gain the confidence of additional shareholders and interested parties thanks to its increased transparency. In addition, the Company plans to invest its entire liquidity reserve of € 72 million in new equity interests in shoppingcenters this year.