Mongolia ranked seventh by GRDI

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ The A.T. Kearney is a global management consulting firm has released the Global Retail Development Index (GRDI) for this year. According to this, Mongolia rose to the seventh place from the ninth, the second time it is landed among the top ten. It has been mainly influenced by its copper and coal mining industries, and Mongolia has become Asia’s fastest growing economy, ripe with opportunities for both general merchandise retailers and specialty retailers. Armenia jumped for the first time to the top 10 most attractive country list. The sub-Saharan African country of Namibia made the top 30 list for the first time while Botswana jumped to 25 from 20. By region, Latin America appears to present the best opportunities, with seven countries in the top 30, with Brazil, Chile and Uruguay taking the top three spots. The A.T. Kearney partner and study co-leader Michael Moriarty said, "As developed markets face flat or anemic growth, developing markets are sources of important growth, and the GRDI helps our clients identify when windows of opportunity for retail investment open up in some country markets that are pretty hard to anticipate." Published since 2002, the GRDI ranks the top 30 developing countries for retail investment worldwide. The Index analyzes 25 macroeconomic and retail-specific variables to help retailers devise successful global strategies and to identify emerging market investment opportunities. A.T. Kearney partner and study co-leader Althea Peng noted, "Shopping centers and malls are driving much of the progress in organized retail in developing countries, as they solve regulatory and real estate issues for many retailers." The Village Mall in Rio de Janeiro, JK Iguatemi in São Paulo, and the Costanera Center Mall in Chile have served as platforms for the launch and expansion of international brands in Latin America.