21 January 2005 – Beijing (CHN): Wal-Mart is to partner with Beijing-backed conglomerate CITIC Pacific to open hundreds of stores in China over the next five years, a top CITIC Pacific executive told Reuters.
The two corporations plan to invest billions of yuan to open stores in central China as well as the eastern cities of Shanghai and Nanjing.
CITIC Pacific managing director, Henry Fan, told the news agency: "We have a lot of property projects in China and we will welcome Wal-Mart as our anchor tenant. We are looking for suitable sites and the next store will be in Shanghai."
Wal-Mart opened its first China store in 1996 and now has 39 outlets in the country. The retail giant already has a 65/35 joint venture with CITIC Corporation, CITIC Pacific’s parent company, in Nanjing.
