US: Walmart has appointed Bill Simon as president and CEO of its US operations. Simon has been promoted from US chief operating officer. Former Walmart US boss Eduardo Castro-Wright continues as vice chairman and takes on the new roles of president and CEO of Global.com and global sourcing.

Shares in General Mills fell this week after the food giant, which owns Cheerios, Old El Paso and Häagen-Dazs, posted a 1% increase in full-year sales to $14.8bn and gave lower-than-expected forecasts for the coming year. 

Although chairman and CEO Ken Powell said 2011 would be "another year of quality growth", he admitted rising ingredient costs would hit net sales and operating profits. Net sales would grow in the low single digits, he predicted, while operating profits would increase in mid-single digits.

POLAND: Kraft Foods has signed an agreement to sell Cadbury's E.Wedel chocolate and sugar confectionery brand and manufacturing facility to Lotte Group. The divestment of the E.Wedel business was one of the conditions imposed by the European Commission when it approved Kraft's acquisition of Cadbury. The company is also required to sell the Cadbury chocolate confectionery and soft-cake business in Romania.

EGYPT: Makro has opened its first outlet in Egypt, claiming the move will encourage more efficient internal trade and cut consumer prices. The 100,000 sq ft warehouse in Salam City stocks 20,000 food and non-food products. Makro aims to open 12 more warehouses in Egypt in the medium term, and another eight in the long term.

FRANCE: Carrefour has begun cutting the number of food lines in its French stores as part of a strategy to boost sales. Earlier this year, chief executive Lars Olofsson pledged to cut 15% of the company's food products worldwide and as much as 50% of non-food lines because he believed that the company could no longer compete in every category.