British supermarket chain operator Tesco said on Tuesday that it is selling its 20% share in Gain Land to China Resources for EUR 275 million (USD 300 million). The company described it as a move to “simplify and focus the business on its core operations.”
China Resources and Tesco reached an agreement in October 2013 to create Gain Land in a joint venture. At the time, the goal was to merge Tesco’s 134 stores and shopping mall business in China with retailer China Resources Vanguard’s 2,986 stores. China Resources, which owns China Resources Vanguard, held an 80% in the JV.
Tesco’s selloff of its 20% share is scheduled to close by Friday. It follows another exit by a multinational retailing giant from China, where e-commerce players and local retailers are increasingly gaining the upper hand. Last July, Carrefour backed away from China by selling 80% of its business in the country to Suning.com for RMB 4.8 billion (USD 700 million).
This article is part of KrASIA’s “China Brief” section, where KrASIA’s reporters will provide quick daily updates about the tech ecosystem in China.