The German retailer Metro Group said it tripled the pace of its expansion in China last year despite the country's slowing economy.

Metro opened 12 stores in China last year and said it plans to have 100 stores in the country in the next three to four years.

Metro signed a joint-venture agreement in 2010 with the Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology to bring Media-Saturn, Europe's largest chain of electrical stores, to China.

Since entering the Chinese market in 1996, Metro, which mostly runs cash-and-carry outlets in China, has opened 54 stores in the country.