Wal-Mart to Invest Over $1 Billion on Logistics in Mexico
Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB, Latin America’s biggest retailer, will spend more than $1 billion to improve its logistics operations, a person with direct knowledge of the plan said.
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and company officials were to announce the investment on Dec. 7 at the presidential residence in Mexico City. The investment won’t be related to new store openings, the person said.
Wal-Mart ranks No. 3 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest private carriers in North America.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. owns a 70% stake in Walmex, which operates 2,360 stores in Mexico. Mexico and Canada were the biggest drivers of sales growth for Wal-Mart’s international segment in fiscal 2016, according to a company report. Walmex also operates in Central America.
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U.S.-Mexico business relations have been in the spotlight after the presidential election of Donald Trump, who has called for a re-examination of trade between the two countries. Mexico is Wal-Mart’s biggest division outside the United States. In both countries, the company is one of the largest private employers.
Walmex CEO Guilherme Loureiro said in a September interview with El Financiero Bloomberg TV that the company would invest more than $1 billion to improve its logistics in Mexico. The amount of planned investment has grown since then, the person said.
