Convenience store chain Seven-Eleven Japan Co. said Thursday it racked up its 23rd consecutive year of record earnings in the year through Feb. 28, thanks to aggressive store openings.

The firm said it posted an 82.83 billion yen group net profit in 2002, up 1.4 percent over the previous year, on record group sales of 424.09 billion yen, up 10.3 percent.

The chain opened a record 930 new stores during the period and closed down 300 unprofitable outlets in 2002. As of the end of February, it had 9,690 stores nationwide.

Seven-Eleven Japan, the nation's largest convenience store chain, is 50.6 percent owned by Ito-Yokado Co.

Sales from all stores, including those run by franchisees, grew 4.7 percent to 2.21 trillion yen -- far bigger than that of the parent supermarket operator.

The opening blitz was especially intensive in Aichi Prefecture, where the chain opened its first outlet in July. There are now 85.

The chain pursues a "dominant store opening" policy, carpet bombing a particular market to take advantage of cost-effective distribution and higher local recognition.

It has maintained a relatively low profile in western and central Japan, but company officials said this is about to change. The firm plans to open a record 1,000 outlets in its current business year, and many of these stores will be in those areas.

By February, the chain expects to be operating 10,390 outlets nationwide.

The chain said original items, including rice balls, helped to achieve strong earnings in 2002.

Food items that reflect local tastes, such as beef-tongue boxed lunches in Sendai are popular, it said.

The firm said it expects to extend its record earnings streak for the current business year, forecasting a group net profit of 89.8 billion yen on revenue of 483 billion yen.