MADRID (AP) — Spanish clothes retailer Inditex, which owns the Zara store chain, says net profit for its first fiscal quarter of 2016 rose 6 percent thanks to greater sales globally.

Inditex said profit for February through April was 554 million euros ($621 million), up from 521 million euros for the same period last year.

The company's shares were up 2.7 percent at 28.74 euros in Wednesday morning trading in Madrid.

The company said sales reached 4.88 billion euros, a 12 percent increase on the same period in 2015.

Inditex says it opened 72 new stores in the period for a total of 7,085 and added some 11,900 jobs in the process.

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