UK’s Sainsbury’s ends talks to sell Argos to China’s JD.com
Sainsbury’s, which has focused more on food since 2020, had on Friday said it was in talks with JD.com for the sale of the retail giant
British supermarket group Sainsbury’s said on Sunday it has terminated talks with Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com over selling the Argos general merchandise retailer, a day after confirming discussions were under way.
“JD.com has communicated that it would now only be prepared to engage on a materially revised set of terms and commitments, which are not in the best interests of Sainsbury’s shareholders, colleagues and broader stakeholders,” the company said in a statement.
The company repeated its forecast for retail underlying operating profit of around £1 billion (US$1.36 billion) in the 2025-2026 financial year.
JD.com did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Argos, which Sainsbury’s bought in 2016 for £1.1 billion, is Britain’s second-largest general merchandise retailer, with the third most-visited retail website in the country and more than 1,100 collection points.