X5 Retail Group (Perekrestok, Pyaterochka, Kopeika) intends to replace Turkish food products with those from Iran, said the company's press officer, Stanislav Naumov. Slon.ru reports that the company is now cooperating with Iran by organising business missions and delegations, and are being assisted by the Iranian ambassador to Russia. Naumov also asserted that the retailer is no longer selling Turkish fruit and vegetables: they have already been replaced by products from Azerbaijan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan. It was reported that four Iranian companies plan to start exporting to Russia in January. (finans.gazetevatan.com)Private label brands gains popularity, according to Canstar
The majority of Australians now tend to buy private-label groceries over big-name brands, according to consumer research company Canstar Blue. Just under two thirds (65%) of shoppers now prefer private labels, an increase of one fifth from just six months ago when that figure was 44%. The increase goes hand in hand with improved perceptions of quality, with more than three quarters (76%) of shoppers rating private label brands from Coles, Woolworths and Aldi as ‘good quality’. That compares with 59% in June 2015. (news.com.au)India: Amazon to kick off grocery delivery by April
Amazon India plans to launch grocery delivery before April, a move that may threaten the survival of so-called hyperlocal start-ups and provide a boost to its prospects in an intense market share battle with Flipkart and Snapdeal. Amazon’s move comes at a time when grocery delivery start-ups Grofers and PepperTap are shutting operations in several cities or moderating expansion plans to reduce costs. (livemint.com)UK: Waitrose customers to get 20% discount on favourite products
Waitrose is to launch its first value-focused TV ad campaign in years as it looks to fight back against budget rivals Lidl and Aldi. The campaign focuses on Waitrose’s “Pick Your Own Offers” deal which allows customers to pick their favourite 10 products, from a list of 1,000, on which they will get a 20% discount every time they shop. (theguardian.com)Walmart, Costco And Kroger named as Top 250 Global Retailers
US companies Walmart, Costco and Kroger lead the list of the top 250 global retailers (food and specialized), according to a study by Deloitte and specialized magazine, Stores, published by the National Retail Federation. According to the "2016 Global Powers of Retailing" study, Walmart leads the list with $485.6bn in revenue. Costco is 
second with $112.6bn in retail revenue, while Kroger moved from sixth to third place with $108.4bn in retail revenue. Rounding off the top 8 are Schwarz ($102.7bn); Tesco ($99.7bn); Carrefour ($98.5bn); Aldi ($86.5bn); Metro Group ($85.6bn) (esmmagazine.com)Bim among Top 250 Global Retailers in Turkey
The only Turkish company featuring in the list is the discount retailer Bim, reports finans.gazetevatan. According to the report published by Deloitte, Bim increased their income from $6.2bn (2014) to $6.6bn (2015) and achieved economic growth of 22.1% between 2009-2014. They have also taken 153rd place on the “World’s Largest Global Retail Brands” list. (finans.gazetevatan.com)Slovenia: Mercator removes Israeli fruit from shelves
Mercator, Slovenia's largest supermarket chain, has removed Israeli products from its shelves – including pomelos, dates and avocados, following pressure from the pro-Palestinian BDS movement, a global campaign targeting Israel. The chain's management had succumbed to pressure from activists with a pro-Palestinian organization that had held noisy demonstrations in their stores. (ynetnews.com)UK: Co-operative Food ranked biggest improver among grocers
The Co-operative Food has stated among the top supermarkets in the 2015 BrandIndex rundown of general store improvers. In a survey by internet based statistical surveying firm YouGov, the Co-operative, which got a positioning of – 3.7 in 2014, got 2.7 in 2015, and accomplished an overall improvement score of 6.4. This score likewise made the Co-operative grocery store the fourth biggest improver over all the sectors. (internationalsupermarketnews.com)
Aldi launches online shopping service for wine in the UK Aldi has today launched its grocery e-commerce offering assortment of 54 wines by the case. Specialbuys, Aldi's weekly offer which includes mainly non-food items, will be added to the site between April and June 2016. (igd.com)
Latin America: key retail developments in Q4
In this update, we look at what happened at retailers across the region in the fourth quarter of 2015, including expansion, refocusing, and quarterly results. Please, click here to read the article. Swiss Migros posts flat full year sales growth
Swiss retailer Migros has reported annual net sales of €25.05bn, up 0.1% on last year. Sales have been affected by the strong Swiss franc, along with subdued consumer sentiment. Despite these adverse conditions, Migros has still grown its market share and increased customer visits by 0.6%. Sustainable and local products have been two stand out areas for the retailer, with sales reaching €3.2bn. Migros's BIO and Alnatura ranges saw growth of 14.8%.(igd.com)