Tesco, Britain's biggest retailer, has sold its Malaysian and Thai businesses to Thailand's Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group in a deal valued at US$10.6 billion (RM44.63 billion).

According to Reuters, CP Group's board had approved a deal for its subsidiaries to buy up 86.9 percent of Tesco's Thai business and 100 percent of the retailer's Malaysian business.

Once the deal is completed, Tesco intends to return about £5 billion (RM27.77 billion) to shareholders via a special dividend with associated share consolidation.

Hypermarkets in Malaysia has been hit by sluggish growth in recent years, resulting in some Giant and Cold Storage outlets closing.

Tesco is one of Malaysia's largest hypermarket chain with 60 outlets.