Retailers from Europe and Asia are in an auction battle for the south-east Asian assets of the French supermarket chain Carrefour.
The French company put the stores on the market after a strategic decision to withdraw from Asian countries where it stood no chance of becoming market leader.
The portfolio consists of 40 supermarkets in Thailand, 19 in Malaysia and two in Singapore; and is expected to fetch around €780 million.
UK supermarket giant Tesco is among more than 10 firms bidding for the assets. The UK retailer has been steadily expanding in the region, primarily through smaller express stores.
Tesco is already the market leader in Thailand and Malaysia, and more than a third of its shop floor space is in Asia.
Singapore-based retail group Dairy Farm and French retailer Casino are also in the running, but US retailing giant Wal-Mart is not expected to enter the bidding war, according to the Financial Times.
Carrefour plans to remain in China, however, which accounts for 70 per cent of its stores in Asia. It will also remain in Indonesia and Taiwan.Asia generated eight per cent of Carrefour’s sales last year.
On Carrefour’s website, it states that the company’s future growth is likely to come from China, Indonesia, Brazil, Poland and Turkey.
The French retailer said on Tuesday that it made a net profit of €82 million in the first half of this year.
It is thought that no date has yet been set for the next round of bidding for the assets, which will take place once bankers have worked through the details of the offers.
