Walmart rips up China online strategy, starts again with stake in Alibaba rival
Walmart rips up China online strategy, starts again with stake in Alibaba rival Walmart Stores Inc has sold its Chinese online grocery store in return for a stake in the country's no. 2 e-commerce firm, ripping up its previous strategy in efforts to cure ailing sales in one of the world's toughest retail markets. The deal will see the US grocery giant swap its Yihaodian platform for a 5% stake in Inc, worth about $1.5 billion by the firm's latest market value. The move also gives Walmart a ringside seat in bitter rivalry with Chinese e-commerce leader Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. The sell-off, announced on Monday, is a significant shift for Walmart in China, where it operates more than 400 bricks-and-mortar stores. The firm has been shuttering underperforming outlets and grappling with soft online sales in the world's second-biggest economy since it bought full control of Yihaodian in July last year, saying the site would play a l...
