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Wal-Mart Leaving Germany
Retailer Employs 11,000 People At German Stores

POSTED: 8:11 am PDT July 28, 2006
UPDATED: 8:21 am PDT July 28, 2006

BERLIN -- Wal-Mart said Friday it has agreed to sell its 85 stores in Germany to Metro AG, based in Duesseldorf, Germany.

The move effectively ends Wal-Mart's efforts to crack the German market. Those efforts have been under way for nearly 10 years.

Neither company provided details on the deal.

Wal-Mart said the German economic situation makes it difficult for the American giant to achieve the "size and results" it had been seeking.

"As we focus our efforts on where we can have the greatest impact on our growth and return on investment strategies, it has become increasingly clear that in Germany's business environment it would be difficult for us to obtain the scale and results we desire," Michael Duke, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. vice chairman, said in a statement. "This sale positions us to increase our focus on the markets where we can achieve our objectives."

Metro said it would see what it called a "positive financial effect" from the transaction.

Wal-Mart employs 11,000 people at its stores in Germany.

The deal remains subject to approval by authorities.

Wal-Mart's international operations comprise 2,700 stores in 14 countries outside the United States.

In the past year, the company became majority owner of Seiyu in Japan, completed its acquisition of Sonae in Brazil, and expanded into six new markets including Northern Ireland, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.