MADRID (AP) — Spanish fashion retailer Inditex, which owns Zara stores, says net profit fell by 2.4 percent in the first half of 2014 despite robust sales, mainly due to the impact of a strong euro.

The company said Wednesday that profit for February to July was 928 million euros ($1.2 billion) compared with 951 million euros for the same period in 2013.

The decline came despite a 6 percent rise in sales to 8.1 billion euros.

Inditex says it opened 129 new stores during the period, boosting its global store count to 6,460.

Founded in 1975 by Amancio Ortega, Inditex operates eight brands including Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Oysho.

Inditex's shares were down 1.7 percent in morning trading in Madrid while the main Spanish index was up 0.3 percent.