Johannesburg - Massmart Holdings [JSE:MSM] is happy to meet government about
the Walmart deal but will not negotiate with it, CEO Grant Pattison said on
Thursday.
"We are open to meetings but they will not be
negotiations," he said at Massmart's annual results presentation in
Johannesburg.
He said it would not set a good precedent for other foreign
investors into South Africa if Massmart negotiates with government about
Walmart's bid to acquire a controlling stake in it.
The appropriate bodies to assess the transaction were the
Competition Tribunal and Competition Appeals Court, he said.
The deal went through in June.
Government has since requested a review of the deal, and complained earlier that it was not given the information it had requested about the transaction.