In late June 2017, the Dubai-based conglomerate of Majid Al Futtaim (MAF, sales of US$8.14 billion in 2016, up by 9%) signed to buy the regional retail business from BMA International. Without disclosing the investment value, MAF gains 26 Geant grocery stores in the U.A.E., Bahrain and Kuwait (including two large hypermarkets at Nakheel’s IBN Battuta Mall in Dubai and Yas Mall in Abu Dhabi) plus four Gulfmart supermarkets in Bahrain.
These will be branded as Carrefour by December 2017. In...