A staff worker of the British retailer Tesco's Zhenning Road outlet in Shanghai chekcs and packs up inventories today. The Tesco outlet at the crossroad of Zhenning Road and Yongyuan Road will shut down tomorrow as it terminates operation there after it went into business since July 2003. As the lease of the business place expires tomorrow, it shuts down the business instead of renewing amid speculation that rent hike may be to blame. Overseas retailers have been slowing down expansion as labor costs and rent hikes have squeezed profits. The total number of new outlets of Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco in China declined by 27 percent last year, compared to the same period a year ago. US retail giant Wal-Mart said in April that it will close its Minhang outlet in Shanghai alone with another two in Jiangsu and Guangdong provinces. --Wang Rongjiang