ANKARA: Tesco has completed the sale of its stake in Turkish supermarket chain Kipa, which it bought in 2003. The sale was first announced in June last year, part of Tesco’s efforts to offload its underperforming assets and focus on its core supermarket business. Tesco has also sold restaurant chain Giraffe and its garden centre Harris + Hoole.
The UK’s biggest supermarket has not stopped window-shopping for other businesses, however, announcing recently that it would be attempting a £3.7bn merger with Booker Group, a supplier and convenience store owner, which owns Londis and Budgens stores. It is not yet certain whether the merger between the two will go ahead. There have been warnings that the competition and markets authority (CMA) will raise concerns, as the merged group would own a sizeable chunk of the convenience store market. James Lowman, chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores, which represents 33,500 local shops, has said that the CMA could either block the deal, or put conditions on it. With a deal of this size, it is also likely that the CMA will be considering the case for some time. Tesco’s share price was up 0.5 per cent in afternoon trading at 189.5p.
