The two largest US supermarkets “married”, transactions nearly Rp 385 T

Jakarta –

One of the two largest supermarket United States (USA) Kroger has announced that it will acquire second largest retail giant Albertsons. The settlement agreement is said to have reached US $ 25 billion or equivalent to Rp 360 trillion (exchange rate of Rp 15,400).

The deal, which is expected to be completed in 2024, will unite the two largest US supermarket chains. Together, if the two companies officially merge, the total number of workers will be 710,000.

So combine the number of stores with nearly 5,000 stores and it will score more than $ 200 billion in sales. This merger is one of the efforts of traditional supermarkets to compete with large e-commerce companies like Amazon, Walmart and other retailers.

“The merger accelerates our position as a more attractive alternative to larger, non-union competitors,” Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen said in a statement.

If the deal is completed, it will be one of the largest mergers in US retail history. Larger than Amazon’s 2017 acquisition of Whole Foods of $ 13.7 billion.

Morgan Stanley estimates that Kroger’s merger with Albertsons will become the third largest US retail chain by sales value. Its combined market share in the $ 1.4 trillion food sector will increase by 13.5%. Making it the second largest grocery seller behind Walmart’s 15.5% stake.

Kroger (KR) will buy Albertsons stock for $ 34.10 per share at a premium of approximately 30% above the wholesale chain’s average share price over the past month. Shares of Kroger (KR) fell 5% at the start of trading on Friday, while Albertsons fell 7%.

The move also comes as companies struggle with high food inflation reaching its highest level in decades. Prices in grocery stores continued to rise last month. The Grocery Price Index, an indicator of grocery store prices, increased 0.7% in September from the previous month and 13% over the past year.

(yes / dna)