Walmart to expand footprint in China

Walmart (WMT) plans to expand its presence in China by one-third, after it closed unprofitable stores and laid off workers last year.

The retail giant plans to open 115 new stores across China by 2017 and will create 30,000 new jobs, Walmart announced in a statement.

“China is a key strategic market for Wal-Mart,” said CEO Doug McMillon at a briefing in Beijing. "Our aim is to become an integral part of China's economy."

While China’s 2014 economic growth slowed to pace not seen in decades, domestic consumption remains strong, says Yahoo Finance Senior Columnist Michael Santoli.

“The Chinese economy is slowing largely because the export driven growth we've become used to has been waning,” he says. “It is pivoting toward domestic consumption within China.”

Get the Latest Market Data and News with the Yahoo Finance App

It may be difficult for Walmart to carve out a dominant position in China, says Santoli, but the shift toward domestic consumption will give the company a boost.

“Walmart, which really became the giant that it is because of cheap Chinese goods produced there and sent over here, can now go into China and radically increase its footprint and try to benefit from Chinese consumer spending and the growth of the middle class,” he says.

Walmart recently announced plans to scale back its U.S. supercenter expansion. Santoli notes that most of the company's growth will come from overseas.

“It's really built out in the U.S. We have a mature slow growth economy," he says. "They're not expanding their square footage here in the U.S., except for the smaller format stores.”

Walmart is due to report first quarter earnings on May 19th.