Czech competition office clears deal
The Czech competition office (UOHS) has cleared Tesco's purchase of 27 small supermarkets from German retailer Edeka.

Tesco is the fifth largest retailer in the Czech Republic, with annual sales of Kcs22 billion (£532 million). Its portfolio includes 28 hypermarkets, six department sores and one supermarket.

Edeka, which operates 38 supermarkets in the Czech Republic, revealed in November that it intended to withdraw from the country to concentrate on the domestic market. Tesco announced the acquisition on February 10 this year. The transactions are expected to be complete within a month.

The UOHS concluded that the deal would not constitute a threat to existing competition in the retail market.