TORONTO—Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Wednesday it is spending half a billion dollars this year to expand in Canada, the latest example of a retail rush north to take advantage of Canada's relatively robust economy and eager-to-spend consumers.
Wal-Mart's Canadian arm will open 40 supercenter-format stores in the next fiscal year, though only eight of these will be new stores. The remainder will consist of expansions or remodelings of existing stores, as well as store relocations. The expansion is expected to increase the number of Wal-Mart stores in Canada to 333 by the end of January 2012, including 164 supercenters. As of Dec. 31, 2010, Wal-Mart had 323 stores in Canada, including 119 supercenters.
Wal-Mart's news comes two days after a pair of real-estate investment trusts— Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. of Greensboro, N.C. and RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust of Toronto—said they'll invest up to $1 billion over the next five to seven years to build as many as 15 new outlet centers there.
Two weeks ago, Target Corp. said it will spend 1.83 billion Canadian dollars ($1.83 billion) to take over as many as 220 stores of Canadian discount retailer Zellers. The first Target stores are expected to open in Canada in 2013. TJX Cos. has indicated its off-price Marshalls chain plans to open several stores in Canada next spring. The J. Crew Group Inc. has said it's looking at expanding in Canada, while Limited Brands Inc.'s Victoria's Secret recently opened its first Canadian stores.
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