** The head of French retailer Leclerc tells news magazine Challenges.fr his group is discussing the purchase of some hypermarkets from rival Casino.
** “We are in discussions to buy some Geant hypermarkets of the Casino group,” CEO Michel Edouard Leclerc is quoted as saying.
** Indebted retailer Casino could sell or turn some its 20 loss-making hypermarkets in France into franchises, among options for the stores it has outlined to worker unions, a spokesman told Reuters last week.
Note: Reuters has not verified this story and does not vouch for its accuracy
Further company coverage: (Reporting by Paris Newsroom)