President Chain Store Corp (統一超商), the operator of Taiwan’s largest convenience store chain 7-Eleven, announced on Saturday night that it had signed a letter of intent to cooperate with China’s Better Life Investment Group Co (步步高投資集團) to operate a hypermarket business in the Sichuan area.
Under the deal, President Chain said it would sell a 60 percent stake in two of its Chinese hypermarket businesses to Xiangtan, Hunan Province-based Better Life.
The two hypermarkets PCSC (Sichuan) Hypermarket Ltd (四川統一量販超市) and PCSC (Chengdu) Hypermarket Ltd (成都統一量販超市) are based in Sichuan Province.
President Chain did not disclose the details of the deal, including its financial terms, citing confidentiality.
The company said the purpose of the deal was to combine resources with Better Life to jointly operate hypermarket business in Sichuan, the statement said.
Better Life Investment Group was established in February 2003 and includes businesses such as freight transport, property management, warehouse management, exports and imports. In December 2003, Better Life set up a wholesale and retail business unit, Better Life Commercial Chain Share Co (步步高商業連鎖公司), to engage mainly in supermarket and department store businesses, as well as the sale of household electrical appliances.
By the end of last year, Better Life Investment Group had total assets of 4.56 billion yuan (US$699.2 million), with a net profit of 74.92 million yuan, the Chinese company’s data showed.
The share sale is still subject to regulatory approval and completion of the transaction will depend on further discussion between two sides, President Chain said in the statement.
Shares of President Chain closed 0.37 percent higher at NT$134.5 on Friday. Over the past 12 months, the company’s stock has risen 58.24 percent compared with a 7.48 percent increase on the benchmark TAIEX.
First-quarter revenue rose 5.18 percent to NT$28.28 billion from NT$26.89 billion a year ago, but declined 3.06 percent from NT$29.18 billion in the previous quarter, the company reported on April 8.
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