Harare - Zimbabwe's competition regulator approved Pick n
Pay Stores [JSE:PIK] plans to raise its stake in that country’s biggest grocery
merchant, a $13m deal that forms part of the South African food retailer’s
expansion plans across the continent.
Under the deal, Cape Town-based Pick n Pay would raise its
shareholding in TM Supermarkets from 25% to 49%, TM Supermarkets parent company
Meikles Limited said in a statement on Friday.
The investment had been approved mid-year by Zimbabwe’s
central bank and empowerment ministry but the Competition and Tariff Commission
was yet to give its nod.
Zimbabwe’s government is pressing foreign-owned companies,
including mines and banks, to transfer at least 51% shares to blacks under an
empowerment programme that has caused unease among foreign investors.
Some of the stores of TM Supermarkets - Zimbabwe's largest
grocery retailer - would be rebranded Pick n Pay under the deal.
Cape Town-based Pick n Pay is pulling out of Australia to
focus on expansion closer to home and fend off competition from US retailer
Walmart, which recently bought control of South African merchant Massmart
Holdings [JSE:MSM].