Canada’s Target stores lost nearly one Billion dollars in less than a year of operations – as the U-S discount retailer began its first expansion outside the U-S.

The second-largest U-S discount department store operator after Walmart says its Canadian segment had a $329-million-dollar loss before interest and tax items – in the latest quarter.

The company says it generated $623-million dollars of sales at its Canadian stores.

But it struggled with gross margins of 4.4 per cent of sales, reflecting its efforts to lower prices to clear excess inventory on its shelves.