Seven & i Holdings Co (3382.T) on Thursday said it would buy convenience stores and petrol stations from Texas-based Sunoco LP (SUN.N) for about $3.3bn, as the Japanese retailer accelerates efforts to boost its U.S operation. (Reuters)
Tesco takes on supplier's bumper carrot crop to stop it going to waste (VIDEO)
Tesco takes on suppliers' bumper carrot crop to stop it going to waste. Tesco said that a mild winter means its suppliers have more carrots than planned. The retailer said that it managed, together with its suppliers, to stop the carrot crop going to waste. Coles follows Aldi’s lead in move to simplify invoices for suppliers
The Australian reports that after a pilot program, Coles is rolling out a simplified invoicing scheme similar to that used by Aldi. The new invoices will show the “net price” of products by separating out this final price from any discounts or rebates involved in the transaction and removing confusion or any potential backwards-and-forwards conversations about the final price before suppliers actually get paid. (smartcompany.com.au) UK: Tesco cuts down opening hours
Tesco has announced that it is ending 24 hour opening at a further eight of its larger stores as part of a raft of operational changes that will affect 3,000 staff. This latest reduction in the number of stores that open for 24 hours coincides with a shift towards night-to-day replenishment at 69 stores. (igd.com)AU: Metcash working to stop grocery market share loss - report
Media reports emerged of the retail/wholesaler having trouble driving sales growth. The media reports claimed Metcash was working with IGA retailers and suppliers on a new price matching program aimed at trying to stop a slide in the group’s grocery market share loss. The reports say this loss of share has accelerated since Woolworths stared getting its act together late last year to stem the slide in sales and margins in its huge supermarkets business. Industry sources were quoted as saying that Metcash was preparing to invest another $40-50m into cutting grocery prices under the second round of its Price Match program which cuts prices on key grocery items to match those at Coles and Woolworths. (sharecafe.com.au) Romania: Auchan to open 15 c-stores in Romania
OMV Petrom, the largest oil and gas producer in Southeastern Europe, has signed an agreement with Auchan Retail Romania to open 15 convenience stores in Bucharest and across the country by end of 2017. (petrolplaza.com) US: March total company comparable sales up 6%
Costco Wholesale Corp. reported that its total comparable sales for the month of March, the five weeks ended April 2, 2017 increased 6%, with a 7% increase in U.S., a 3% rise in Canada, and Other International comparable sales rose 4%. (nasdaq.com)All major UK supermarkets offer British cucumbers again
Slowly more British greenhouse grown produce is becoming available on UK retail shelves. After Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons, also Waitrose and Tesco are offering British cucumbers this week. Retail pricing of the cucumbers remains stable; from as low as 49p for a cucumber at Lidl and Aldi to as much as 59p for a cucumber at Co-op. (produceview.co.uk)Egyptian food retail market grows stronger despite challenges
Egypt continues to maintain its position as the Arab world’s largest consumer market. With an estimated 92 million citizens and one of the world’s fastest growing populations, the demand for food products will continue to grow. Analysts expect more demand for imported food products, according to the “2016 Annual Retail Foods Egypt” report published by the Global Agriculture Information Network (GAIN). (dailynewsegypt.com)Croatian retailer Žabac offers discounted and short-date products
Croatia’s largest food outlet Žabac has opened in Zagreb offering products discounted by up to 90%. The store concept is the sale of surplus goods produced in factories, broken packaging and shelf products shortly before their expiration dates at significant discounts. (esmmagazine.com)Aldi is ramping up its domination plan for Australia
Aldi will open 25 new stores a year on the east coast and spend at least half a billion dollars smartening up its ageing fleet, amid warnings it must innovate to arrest slowing sales growth and survive the supermarket price war. Analysts suggest Aldi will spend as much as $3m a store to refresh its ageing outlets in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in addition to launching 25 new stores a year in its updated format. The new layout features among other things a larger fresh component. Please, click here to read more at businessinsider.com.au. 
India: Online grocery market set for big action in 2017Please, click here to read the article.
Brazil’s GPA to open 28 Assaí stores this year
Brazilian food retailer Grupo Pão de Açúcar (GPA) plans to open up to 28 Assaí cash-and-carry stores in 2017. With the planned openings, the company will double its share of the cash-and-carry market in Brazil, group president Ronaldo Iabrudi told Brazilian daily, O Estado de Sao Paulo. (esmmagazine.com) Germany: Real and other retailers create new procurement alliance
German Real and six other retailers have created the RTG Retail Trade Group. Together, they hope this joint venture will enable them to “match the major German chains” and to create synergies and increased scale when it comes to procurements. The first steps will be taken in the field of both food and non-food. Please, click here to read the article at retaildetail.eu. UK: Tesco-Booker: 70% of investors 'in favour' of deal
Bernstein's Bruno Monteyne, who was a Tesco executive before becoming an analyst, writes in a note sent to clients on Thursday: "We estimate based on the survey that the deal today would be approved by 70% of votes cast... with the remaining 30% being entirely against the deal or wanting material changes." (businessinsider.com) Amazon's market cap worth twice that of Wal-Mart
Amazon is now worth almost double Wal-Mart's market value — in case investors need yet another reminder of the revolution in retail. The Seattle-based giant has a market capitalization of over $430bn, according to FactSet data. In comparison, Wal-Mart's market cap sits below $220bn as of Wednesday morning. (cnbc.com) US: Mariano's to launch online shopping and pickup
Mariano's is the latest Chicago-area grocery retailer to announce a new online shopping option for busy consumers on the go. Shoppers will be able to order their groceries for pickup through the ClickList app or website for a flat fee of $4.95. (chicagotribune.com) 
