Doubts cast on Wal-Mart price war

By Tu Lei (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-07-31 17:40

Currently, Wal-Mart only has 84 shops in China, and figures showed its sales revenue in 2005 was US$700 million yuan, far behind Carrefour's US$2.17 billion.

"This price reduction promotion supplements its every day price's strategy," said the expert.

This suggests the current promotion may simply be the last resort for a foreign firm lacking competitiveness in the Chinese market.

"Wal-Mart's price reduction is one of many localization strategies foreign-funded companies adopt," said Dr Li Bin, associate professor from the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University.

Foreign-funded firms should balance standardization with localization, because the same practice may not apply to all countries. Companies should adjust strategies in implementing localization, explained Li.


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