Accentuating the caveat emptor perspective with critical commentary on financial disclosure. I adopt a skeptical persona and look for chinks in the teflon coating of financial disclosure. My job is to identify financial warts. Perhaps a Black Swan. Disclosure: I do not hold positions in stocks mentioned for three trading days before or after blog post.
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Walmart's Korean Retreat Tactical or Strategic
Walmart (NYSE:WMT)retreats from Korea because they cannot achieve the scale they feel they need. Little information provided as to why they cannot bite off a piece of the market to their liking. Most military planners accept occasional retreat as sound. Cut your losses and fight another day. Why did the Walmart model not work in Korea? Should Walmart draw strategic conclusions about the experience? The sale price was announced (US$882 million) I assume all cash as nothing else was said. Are there any other impacts to earnings and or balance sheet? Sometimes defeats teach more than a long string of victories.