Tesco ends tie-up talks in Turkey

27th May 2014 09:56

Retailing giant Tesco has called an end to talks regarding a potential partnership for its struggling hypermarket chain in Turkey."Tesco has confirmed today that it has ended talks with various parties in respect of potential options for its business in Turkey," the group said on Tuesday.The company had revealed in February that it was considering a tie-up with a retail group in Turkey in an effort to scale back its exposure to the European nation and put more focus on its UK business. Tesco operates through 191 stores in 20 cities in Turkey after entering the country through the acquisition of the Kipa brand in 2003. However, the region's performance has disappointed in recent years with Tesco supposedly looking at a partial exit similar to the one made in China in 2013 when it merged operations with China Resources Enterprise. The group said that the best option now to drive value from Kipa will be to accelerate its plans to "focus the business on its heartlands, minimise capital spend and improve profitability"."The efforts of the team in Turkey are already evident in a stronger customer offer and improved performance and there is more we can do to drive stronger cash generation and returns," Tesco said.The stock was down 0.2% at 303.55p by 10:19 on Tuesday.BC