British firm Tesco is one of the largest and most popular retailers in the world. Nonetheless, after a much publicized, highly anticipated, and rather recent entry into the United States marketplace, Tesco has decided to leave the U.S.

As reported by James Davey and Kate Holton for Reuters: “Britain’s biggest retailer, Tesco, wrote down the value of its global operations by $3.5 billion and announced plans to exit the United States, as it tries to rebuild after a year when profit fell for the first time in two decades. The group – the world’s third biggest retailer after Wal-Mart and Carrefour and one of Britain’s most consistent performers until a profit warning in January 2012 – said on April 17 that abandoning its loss-making U.S. venture Fresh & Easy would mean restructuring and other one-off costs of 1 billion pounds ($1.5 billion).”

Fresh & Easy, Tesco’s U.S. chain, will continue to operate elsewhere.

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