Kingfisher sells stake

Home improvement group Kingfisher said on Monday it had agreed to sell a 70 percent stake in its loss-making B&Q China business to Wumei Holdings Inc for 140 million pounds ($219 million).

The agreement follows Kingfisher's announcement in March of its plans to look for a strategic partner to help develop its B&Q business in China, which is made up of 39 stores and employs 3,000.

Kingfisher, which trades as B&Q and Screwfix in Britain, is Europe's biggest home improvement retailer.

Beijing-based Wumei has a retail network comprising around 650 supermarkets and 10 department stores in northern, eastern and western China.

Source: Global times