A Detailed Analysis of the Kuwait Food and Drink Market: Understand the Current Business Environment, Industry Developments and Market Forecasts.

DUBLIN, Ireland -- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/501b0b/kuwait_food_and_dr) has announced the addition of the "Kuwait Food and Drink Report Q4 2008" report to their offering.

The Kuwait Food Drink Report provides independent forecasts and competitive intelligence on Kuwait's food and drink industry.

Despite the fairly static nature of the Kuwaiti mass grocery retail (MGR) sector, this quarter has seen a number of major developments as discussed in BMI's recently published Kuwait Food & Drink Report for Q408. Kuwait's organised food retail sector is dominated by the government-subsidised Union of Cooperative Societies (UCCS), at the expense of privately-owned operators. The union comprises not only small grocery stores, but also supermarkets, convenience stores and a hypermarket, and it derives its strong market position from its exclusive right to operate in residential areas, while private retail operations are restricted to commercial zones.

However, in recent years, local, private operators have continued to expand, led by The Sultan Center (TSC) and City Center, both Western-style supermarket chains. It seems that TSC has decided that rather than competing exclusively in this challenging domestic environment, it will look abroad for expansion opportunities. In that vein, in August the retailer announced its acquisition of food retailers Monoprix and Geant Casino from local company Admic, in a deal worth US108mn. Under the terms of the agreement, TSC will take over five Monoprix supermarkets, which will be renamed TSC Plus, as well as the Geant supermarket, which will be rebranded under the TSC Mega banner. Although the initial price tag for the store chain was US97mn, this shot up by US11mn when TSC decided that it would also buy the store's stock. This acquisition is in line with TSC's expansion strategy, as it looks to increase its presence in regional markets, due to more limited growth opportunities in its home market.

BMI is forecasting a growth rate of 23.9% between 2007 and 2012 in Kuwait's MGR industry, with total sales set to reach US1.97bn by 2012. This is a steady growth forecast, but low in comparison to some other less well-developed regional markets. However, we are forecasting stronger long-term growth due to the prosperity of the country. Kuwait is in the fortunate position of having an ample and still expanding oil and gas sector. Oil production is forecast to rise from 2.65mn barrels a day (b/d) in 2008 to 3.00mn b/d in 2012, while natural gas will see an even more stellar rate of growth, from 13.6bcm to 20.4bcm over the same period. Nevertheless, the country's geographic size and small population are limitations that will prevent a great boom.

Also in August 2008, the Kuwaiti government announced that it will allow the UCCS retail chain to import products directly from the source, as it looks for ways to cut costs. This should allow these stores to cut out wholesale importers, and will also allow them to give group orders to get better bulk prices. Yet this will also provide UCCS with an even greater competitive advantage, which could act as a further deterrent for any retailers contemplating market entry.

Key Topics Covered:

- Business Environment
- Regional Food & Drink Business Environment Ratings
- Kuwait's Food & Drink Business Environment Rating
- SWOT Analysis
- Food - Drink
- Retail
- Industry Forecast Scenario
- Industry Developments
- Market Overview
- Competitive Landscape
- Deep US Recession Scenario
- Global Scenario

Companies Mentioned:

- Americana (Kuwait Food Company)
- Kuwait Dairy Corporation
- United Beverages Company WLL
- Union of Consumer Co-operative Societies (UCCS)

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/501b0b/kuwait_food_and_dr