Richard Brubaker

Wal-Mart Goes For the Gold In China

Amit,

There does seem to be some confusion on the numbers, and I think the reported numbers/ figures are a mix of original report in November stating a billion (percentages were not mentioned then) and then this recent report.

When I mentioned that WMT does not need a partner, I was speaking from the legal side, not the strategy side. Carrefour, B&Q, and others are all running wholly owned operations, and are doing so successfully.

With regards to importance of China & India, there is no doubt that will be the major push for a lot of industries. Fortunately for WMT it has deep pockets and can make big moves if they see an opportunity.

There are a number of firms who are not so fortunate.