massmartTwo Angolan shops planned for 2015

Massmart planned to enter Angola next year, a senior executive of the retailer said yesterday. Speaking at the Reuters Africa Investment Summit in Johannesburg, Massmart Africa director Mark Turner said a store would open in the first quarter of 2015 and another in the third quarter. “We’ve got two deals coming off in Angola, which is a country [where] we’re not represented.” Another two stores would open there in 2017. The Walmart unit operates in 11 sub-Saharan African countries, including Nigeria, Tanzania and Ghana. It has been pushing into the continent, which is forecast to be home to 2 billion people by 2050, to offset slowing growth at home. Massmart shares rose 2.1 percent to close at R134.85 on the JSE yesterday. – Reuters