������ý

Kroger Co. said Feb. 5 that its chief financial officer is leaving for another company as the supermarket operator waits for regulators’ ruling on its proposed merger with Albertsons Cos.

SEATTLE — Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Jan. 15 sued to block the proposed merger of Kroger and Albertsons, two of the nation’s largest grocery chains.

Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. are bracing for a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over their $24.6 billion tie-up as soon as January as opposition builds against the supermarket megadeal.

California is preparing a lawsuit to block Kroger Co.’s $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons Cos. on concerns the deal could hurt consumers and workers, Attorney General Rob Bonta said.

Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. agreed to sell 413 stores to C&S Wholesale Grocers in a divestiture designed to help win antitrust approval for their $24.6 billion merger.

Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. are selling some of their stores in an effort to win regulatory approval for their $25 billion merger, according to people familiar with the matter.

Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen and Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran made a number of pledges to their customers and employees if their proposed grocery merger prevails.

The proposed merger of food retail giants Kroger and Albertsons has elicited criticism from seven secretaries of state.

Kroger Co. said it’s committed to hunkering down for a long legal battle if U.S. regulators attempt to block its $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons Cos.

Albertsons Cos. is anticipating higher labor costs and “a more difficult consumer environment” in a new sign of caution from big U.S. retailers.