Wal-Mart invests on online trade

China

Monday 16 May 2011

With its shares in the company Yihaodian, Wal-Mart is part of the online trade in the Chinese market.

For Wal-Mart, growth is possible through the expansion of two markets: the online trade and foreign markets.

Last Friday, Wal-Mart announced its intention to buy a share in the Chinese e-commerce company Yihaodian. The agreement amount is not known already but is expected within two months.

Yihaodian offers over 75,000 items, including foodstuffs, groceries and electronics. The site has about 1 million users and its sales exceeded 800 million Yuan (123.08 million dollars) last year. Turnover could be multiplied by 5 in a few years.

According to Wal-Mart, the online commerce in China is very dynamic and should reach the U.S. online sales in the coming years. By investing in Yihaodian, Wal-Mart confirms its targets to increase its growth and become a multi-channel retailer.

source : reuters, live trading news, china org cn