Carrefour, Europe's largest retailer, has agreed to pay 40 million yuan (HK$45.6 million) to increase its stake in a Guangzhou supermarket joint venture.
The French retail giant will buy a 25 per cent stake in Guangzhou Jiaguang Supermarket from its partner Guangzhou Grandbuy to bring its stake in the venture to 80 per cent, Shenzhen-listed Grandbuy said.
Carrefour, which has 112 mainland outlets, came under fire after the Paris leg of the Olympic Games torch relay was beset by violent protests. Those protests led to boycotts of Carrefour and other French companies operating on the mainland for several weeks in March and April.
'We'll buy the stake from our local partner because we are optimistic about the development of supermarkets in Guangzhou at a time when Grandbuy wants to focus on other retail businesses,' said Carrefour spokesman Chen Bo.
Mr Chen admitted that the boycott had a negative impact on sales in April and May but declined to reveal figures.
'Sales in June have returned to normal levels,' he said. '[The boycott] will not change anything, including this year's expansion plans and sales growth forecast because we are confident about the market.'