The world's third largest retailer, Germany's Metro Co., has finally begun the construction of its Beijing store after suffering several setbacks due to towering property prices in the capital, the Beijing News reported.

Metro's Beijing store, scheduled to open next April, would be located near the Summer Palace in the western part of the capital, Metro's public relations manager Huang Zhongjie was quoted as saying by the Beijing News.

The failure of Metro's earlier attempts to construct its Beijing store has long delayed its entry into the capital.

In the end, Metro decided to reduce costs by leasing the property, a deviation from its normal business practices.

Metro has established 15 stores across the country since its entry into the Chinese market in 1995, and it plans to open six to ten stores annually in the next three to five years.

Statistics from the Ministry of Commerce show that foreign-funded enterprises were handling about three percent of China's consumer products retailing by the end of 2004.

The expansion of foreign-funded enterprises has accelerated since China's full-scale opening-up of the retailing industry to foreign investment on December 11, 2004.

Since that date, the number of fully foreign-owned enterprises has also increased.

(Xinhua News Agency November 28, 2005)