French retailer giant Carrefour has opened 101 supermarkets in China since it entered the Chinese market in 1995, Carrefour President Jose Luis Duran said on Thursday.

More than 100 million customers shopped at the 101 Carrefour supermarkets in China last year, bringing a sales volume of 23.8 billion yuan, Duran said.

The retail industry in China has witnessed great changes during the past decade with an annual growth of more than 50 percent, much high than the growth of GDP, Duran added.

The Carrefour president attributed the success of the French retailer in China to its localization strategy.

Among the goods in the Chinese Carrefour supermarkets, 95 percent are produced in the country. Carrefour has also set up purchasing centers in 15 major Chinese centers. Chinese nationals accounted for 80 percent of the managers of the 101 supermarkets and held half of the posts of regional managers.

Carrefour, founded in 1959, is the largest retailer in Europe and the second largest in the world.

(Xinhua News Agency September 7, 2007)