Wal-Mart Stores Inc. paid $757 million for the 140-store retail operations of Brazil's Sonae SGPS SA. The Sonae retail company, based in Porto Alegre, has about 20,000 employees and operations in the state of Sao Paulo and the southern states of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and Parana, Wal-Mart said Wednesday. The world's biggest discount chain, which paid the money to Portugal's Modelo Continente, now has 295 stores in 17 of Brazil's 26 states. Wal-Mart Brazil recently opened its first Supercenter in the federal district of Brasilia, the nation's capital. In 2004, Wal-Mart acquired the 118-store Bompreco chain in northeastern Brazil from Dutch retailer Ahold. © Copyright 2005 by United Press International

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