Wal-Mart planning to acquire Trust-Mart

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has announced their plans to acquire Chinese hypermarket chain Trust-Mart. The deal would be worth around USD 1 billion and would require approval from the regulatory bodies.

If the deal is approved, it would make Wal-Mart the top foreign player in China’s fragmented retail market.

Trust-Mart is a closely held Taiwan company with 100 supercenters in China. This deal would take Wal-Mart ahead of Carrefour SA in the country.

Wall Street Journal reported that Wal-Mart outbid Carrefour for this deal to become a major retailing player in china. Retail analyst Selina Sia with UBS spoke on this new development: “When Wal-Mart expands, supposedly they are going to enjoy better economies of scale. The market is still highly fragmented. None of the chains have a dominant power to take leadership, but there are more domestic firms than foreign ones.”

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