Carrefour Mulls Selling Asian Assets

[STEVE G]

SINGAPORE (WSJ-Asia)-- French supermarket giant Carrefour SA is at the early stages of selling its shops in Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia, a person familiar with the situation said Monday.

"It's still in the early stages, but it's clear they want to sell the south east Asia assets. If it goes through it could generate up to $1 billion," the person said.

Carrefour declined to comment.

Chief Executive Officer Lars Olofsson in May said he was open to offers for the company's operations in markets where it isn't in the top two. Analysts have cited Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore as likely candidates.

"The sale of assets in these countries would make sense as the company has other areas that are priorities for investment," one analyst said. Under Olofsson's direction, Carrefour has focused efforts on its key European markets--France, Spain, Italy and Belgium, where weak consumption is hurting business. France alone accounts for nearly half of the company's annual revenues.

Abroad, fast-growing China and Brazil are priorities for the company.

Olofsson in recent months has restructured Carrefour's operations in a number of countries, reducing operations in Italy and exiting Russia altogether. The company Friday signed a deal with Belgian unions over plans to shut a number of stores in the country, ending four months of negotiations.

The company has lost market share to local operators Delhaize Group and Colruyt, and unions have staged intermittent strikes since February. Friday's agreement in Belgium fueled optimism the company will profitability there. Its shares closed up 2.9% on Monday.

At the end of 2009, Carrefour had 19 large hypermarket stores in Malaysia, two in Singapore and 39 hypermarkets and one convenience store in Thailand.

[PeteC]

This explains why the large plot of land they bought off of Sukhimvit in my little burg more than a year ago now has a for sale sign back on it. In Thailand at least this development must make Tesco and the other grocery stores very happy. Pete

[hhfarang]

Luckily doesn't affect Hua Hin as we have no Carrefour and I've heard no plans of one here...

[Nereus]

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews ... -carrefour

Business as usual for Carrefour

Executives of Carrefour Thailand insisted that it was still business as usual for the French retail chain in the kingdom.

But they admitted any further plans to divest local operations would depend on the French parent, said Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot, who spoke on the telephone with Eric Uzan, chief executive of CenCar Co, the local Carrefour operator.

Mr Alongkorn said the government was committed to persuading Carrefour to retain its investment in Thailand and poised to help if solicited.

He met with representatives from the French Chamber of Commerce to discuss expanding trade and investment, as well as a planned Franco-Thai Business Forum in September in Paris.

Carrefour is reportedly considering off-loading its underperforming operations in Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. The French company has approached potential buyers and may seek bids by early September, sources said.

Carrefour has exited Japan and South Korea in recent years to focus on bigger and fast-growing markets like India, China and Indonesia.

Carrefour first opened in Thailand in 1996 and has 38 locations. Sources put the value of the Thai business at $500-600 million.

Saha Pathanapibul Plc, the SET-listed arm of Thailand's biggest consumer products conglomerate, said it was approached by Carrefour. Chairman Boonchai Chokwatana said the company was studying details of the French company's plan.

UK-based Tesco, the hypermarket leader in Thailand, is said to be among the big operators potentially interested in Carrefour.

Finansia Syrus Securities said SET-listed hypermarket chain Big C Supercenter Plc and trading company Berli Jucker Plc (BJC) may also be in the hunt.

Big C probably has an advantage over Berli Jucker because of its high cash flow, it said.

[PeteC]

....Mr Alongkorn said the government was committed to persuading Carrefour to retain its investment in Thailand and poised to help if solicited......

Perhaps the best thing for the country at present is simply to let them go, and advertise, preach and celebrate about it day and night in all media and perhaps bi-planes shooting flares with banners hanging out the back.

Going back at least 15 years there has been a movement of the poor that these mega-stores take business away from them. They're right. Mom and Pop places have gone bust by the ten's of thousands since Tesco first arrived here.

Here is the chance after May 19 for the government to show the common folk they're being thought about and planned for.

However, what I read in that article is once again greed run wild and who is in position to make a killing and take over Carrefour and make its clone even more profitable and powerful.

Hey dumb nuts.....I hope you read HHAD as people here are not going to repeat and write letters to the Bangkok Post, and for sure your connections at the embassies are simply yes men.

Think out of the box? You don't even know where or what the box is unless you can profit from it. (middle finger emoticon), plus Pete

[Nereus]

The problem with letting them go, Pete, is that one of the two big operators, BigC and Tesco, are just going to take over and extend their monopoly, which does nothing for competition in the market.

I shop at Carrefour fairly often, and from what I see a lot of their stock is way out of the price range of many people. Their "customer service" is a joke. If they were to get some of their Managers off their backside and have a look on the shop floor, they may find a few ways to improve their sales.

[Nereus]

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews ... -carrefour

Tesco eyes Carrefour

Tesco Plc investors want the UK's largest retailer to bid for Carrefour's Southeast Asian supermarket assets. Just not at the indicated price.

Carrefour is seeking offers for its units in Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore and Tesco is among the possible buyers, people familiar with the matter said last week. The combined operations could fetch $800 million to $1 billion, a valuation that would be too high for any bidder, said RBS analyst Justin Scarborough.

"If Tesco keeps putting money into their strong markets, and Thailand is clearly one, then that would be grand,'' said Phil Doel, an investment manager at F&C Asset Management in London, whose funds hold about one percent of Tesco shares.

"It depends on price and the return they can get.''

Tesco generates about one-third of its sales outside the UK, where growth is slowing amid heightened competition and easing inflation. Asia accounts for about 15% of the retailer's revenue and is its fastest-growing division by earnings, which rose by 24% last year. Tesco plans to add 460,000 square metres of new store space in the region this year.

[The understudy]

Hi there Y'all

I would like to see some new Chains other than Tesco buy up the Assets of Carrefour in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand like America's Target or Wal Mart. This would add another colorful Superstore Chains!

Your's The understudy

[brianks]

I guess I am the odd ball but I like Carrefour because its products seem to be of better quality than Big C or Tesco. Carrefour was the first big mass marketer in Thailand and its management just has not done their job right or they would not now be the smaller player to Tesco & Big C. The new CEO's attitude that if we cannot be dominant in a market we don't want to be there! Don't fix it or try to figure it out, just walk away. Goes a long way towards the road downhill. Will be interesting to see how this attitude plays in China where there in a battle with Tesco and Wallmart.

Too bad as I would love to have a Carrefour in Hua Hin as I would shop there over Tesco any day. Someone soon will come in with some other big store and give Market Village a go. Have heard that Central is sitting on a site somewhere.

Looking forward to being back when new home is finished in a week.

[The understudy]

Hi there everyone of my fellas on HHAD!

Brianks you are not alone with your observation and your feeling! I frequently visit Carrefour on Ratchada Road in Bangkok and you bare certainly right Carrefour are felt off by haaving slighty better quality products than Tesco and Big C. What both Tesco & Big C don't have are a superb quality Bakery Department. But in all I'm overall satisfied with Thai Style Hyoermarkets but I would really like to see amerilca's Target or Wal Mart enter the Thai Hypermarket scene!

Your's The understudy!!!

[PeteC]

Never heard of this group but if they win, leads me to think foreign product content may decrease, Pete

http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/ret ... -carrefour

[PeteC]

IMO, the worst possible bidder has gotten it, Big C. There goes any stock of foreign food items, unless they make these a bit higher quality than existing Big C's. Pete

[Korkenzieher]

Have always felt that there is a tacit understanding between Carrefour and Tescos, that they tend to keep out of or withdraw from each others stronger markets. I have also suspected that it is only the likely European Commission competition directives in their home markets that has prevented a formal tie-up between these two, directly aimed at taking on Wal-Mart globally. Tesco won't overpay for Carrefour assets, and frankly don't need them. BigC, which is owned by Casino, a French competitor to Carrefour is slowly being put on the back-foot by Tesco and is the logical buyer IMHO, so no surprise to me that they have got it.

[E-Dork]

Too bad as I would love to have a Carrefour in Hua Hin as I would shop there over Tesco any day. Someone soon will come in with some other big store and give Market Village a go. Have heard that Central is sitting on a site somewhere.

If Central do open up a megastore here then Market village don't stand a hope in hell of surviving.

[Spitfire]

Agree completely, Central is light years ahead of almost all the competition. They opened one in Khon Kaen recently and it just takes the piss out of the rest of them. Seems Central is expanding successfully.