Filipino mall developer and operator SM has teamed up with rival operator Waltermart.

“SM Investments Corporation (SMIC), through its subsidiaries SM Retail and SM Prime Holdings, have entered into a joint venture with Watermart Group of Companies,” it said in its disclosure to the Stock Exchange.

Neither company will disclose further details of the alliance until due diligence is complete.

The alliance is part of SM’s goal to cement its position as leader in retailing and shopping mall businesses in the Philippines.

Meanwhile Waltermart described the partnership as an opportunity to further strengthen its position in both the mall and retail business.

Waltermart, owned by the Lim family, has 17 community malls in the country, mostly in the provinces, while SM, owned by Sy, has 51 malls in the Philippines and in China, and a total of 193 stores, comprising 46 department stores, 37 SM supermarkets, 34 SM hypermarkets and 76 SaveMore stores.

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