Lidl has postponed its plans to launch its discount banner in the US, according to a report in Lebensmittel Zeitung. Lidl had hoped to open stores there by 2012.

One of the reasons for putting the move on hold was the tussle between top man Klaus Gehrig who was appointed earlier this year, and chairman Wilfried Ostrierski, who has since left, according to the trade journal. Another reason is that Lidl does not have sufficient qualified manpower to set up the operation in the US. Lebensmittelzeitung says that at least 40 management personnel would be required and getting these together was more difficult than Lidl had reckoned on.

The current economic situation also plays a role as banks have more cautious about investing in multi-million euro operations.

Instead, in the short to medium term, Lidl will place higher priority on its markets in France, where it continues to expand, and in its homeland Germany where it faces strong competition in the discount market from Rewe's Penny chain and Edeka, which is integrating Tengelmann's Plus stores into its Netto banner.

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