E-tailer impact: China Resources to unload all stakes in Wal-Mart joint ventures

E-tailer impact: China Resources to unload all stakes in Wal-Mart joint ventures

DALIAN, China — China Resources (Holdings) plans to sell all of its shares in 21 supermarkets run jointly with Wal-Mart Stores amid a slump in bricks-and-mortar retail operations here.

     The planned sale is expected to total 3.3 billion yuan ($520 million). The company holds varying interests of 25-35% in the joint ventures based in cities such as Shanghai and Beijing, according to materials submitted by a subsidiary to the Shanghai United Assets and Equity Exchange.

     The Chinese state-owned conglomerate also has set prices for stakes in nine of the 21 operators at 1 yuan each. Many of the nine, based in places such as Guangdong and Hunan provinces, are believed to be operating in the red.

     Wal-Mart China, which owns nearly all of the remaining shares, has said this decision will not influence the company’s operations.

     China Resources has been reviewing slumping retail operations. Group company China Resources Enterprise fell into the red in 2014 for the first time since debuting on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange due to struggles with businesses it took over from U.K. supermarket giant Tesco. The company sold its retail division to the parent last month.

     While China’s retail market has been expanding swiftly, conventional businesses dependent on physical outlets are having tough times due to rapidly growing online merchants. A number of general-merchandise supermarkets have closed nationwide. Though supermarkets offer a range of daily necessities, product lineups pale compared with those of cyber peers.

E-tailer impact: China Resources to unload all stakes in Wal-Mart joint ventures