Apr 27 (Reuters) - Spanish supermarket group DIA on Thursday announced a 10% increase in first-quarter sales, in a complex environment for retail chains due to rising costs and the impact of inflation on consumers.

Also, the company, which rose 12% in the stock market after the report, achieved a 7% increase in like-for-like sales -- a metric that excludes distortions in the comparisons due to the reduction or increase of stores -- and now accumulates four consecutive positive quarters in this section.

"These are promising results for the company, which has worked hard to regain its position in the market after a difficult period," said Sergio Avila, an analyst at IG, adding that the company "seems to be on the right track and its results are expected to continue to improve in the future."

The increase in comparable sales, which netted €1,781 million, is similar to the 7.3% increase in the last quarter of 2022.

In the last year, consumer products companies have faced a significant increase in raw material costs that they have not always been able to pass on to the prices of their products, in a scenario of high competition and a drastic increase in the cost of living.

This context has weighed on the profitability margins of many retailers, although some discount brands have benefited from the influx of consumers desperate to make savings.

The group explained the improved results by pointing out that "the commitment to the local store model, combined with a complete assortment and high quality Dia products at affordable prices, has enabled the company to endorse its strategy at a complex economic time when households are opting for smaller, but more frequent, purchases".

By geographic distribution, net sales increased by 11.7% in Spain and 3.2% in Portugal with respect to the previous year. In Argentina, they increased by 19%, while in Brazil they fell by 7.5%.

DIA's business has undergone a deep restructuring in recent years, after major shareholder, Luxembourg-based investment fund LetterOne (which controls 78% of the capital), rescued the company from the brink of insolvency in 2019.

In that year, the company posted a €790 million loss as it failed to stem the decline of a market share it had gained by offering discounts during the prolonged recession in Spain.

Last December, the supermarket chain agreed to sell more than 1,000 Clarel perfume stores to C2 Private Capital for about 60 million euros, whose transaction is still pending approval by the regulator and is expected to close during 2023.

The National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) on March 3 authorized the deal and, to date, 82 of the 224 stores finally agreed have been transferred, DIA said Thursday.

(Reporting by Matteo Allievi, edited by Tomás Cobos)