U.S. Wal-Mart and French Carrefour, the world's No. 1 and No. 2 retailers, are rivaling with each other to expand Chinese markets, a newspaper report said on Sunday.

A Wal-Mart supermarket in Shanghai.the world's No. 1 retailer giant and French Carrefour, the No. 2 retailers, are rivaling with each other to expand Chinese markets. [newsphoto]

The two retailers have stepped up their expansion in China in recent years, virtually matching each other, store for store, in many locales like Chinese Western city of Urumqi, where Carrefour has just opened a store, according to the Los Angeles Times report.

With Carrefour's new expansion, Wal-Mart is lagging behind in the rivalry. The nearest Wal-Mart to Urumqi is 1,400 miles to the east.

"Carrefour's operation in this western city demonstrates why the French company has raced ahead of those of its multinational rivals in the world's most-populous nation," the report noted.

"By joining with Chinese partners, adapting to local culture and employing a supply chain that includes 18-wheel trucks and three-wheel bicycles, Carrefour has become the biggest foreign retailer operating in China," said the report.

Carrefour operates 79 stores in 32 Chinese cities compared with 60 locations in 30 cities for Wal-Mart. Last year, Carrefour's sales in China totaled 2.2 billion U.S. dollars, compared with 1.2 billion U.S. dollars for Wal-Mart, official statistics showed.

Wal-Mart is accelerating its store openings in China - it plans to open at least 18 this year, six more than Carrefour, the report said.

But when it comes to global markets, Wal-Mart beats Carrefour. Wal-Mart's global sales last year reached 285 billion dollars, triple that of Carrefour's. Wal-Mart bought 18 billion dollars in goods from Chinese manufacturers last year.
 
Editor: Yan