Haier closes online shopping platform

Chinese electrical appliance giant Haier Electronic Group Co Ltd has closed its online shopping platform Argos.cn, which opened just three months ago, Chinese media reported on Thursday.

The newspaper Investor China attributed the closure to the withdrawal of Argos' main investor British Home Retail Group.

Haier partnered with British Home Retail last year to explore the Chinese market through multiple channels.

Argos.cn used a website, a mobile phone application, and offline outlets to explore the Chinese market. Currently, it owns six outlets in China, for consumers to pick up online purchases.

Haier declined to comment when approached by China Daily.