Carrefour, that’s why the French government stops the shopping of Canadian Couche-Tard
"We are not in favor of this operation," said the French Minister of Economy, Le Maire, effectively rejecting the acquisition of Carrefour by the Canadian group Couche-Tard
25 billion Canadian dollars, about 16 billion euros. This is what the Canadian large distribution group, Couche-Tard, has put on the table to try to acquire the French Carrefour, the European giant in the sector.
Carrefour itself confirms the intentions of the overseas chain, speaking of a merger and a “friendly” proposal, but the French government blocks the operation.
All the details.
THE STOP OF THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT
Let's start with what appears to be a certainty. For the French government, this marriage between Couche-Tard and Carrefour has nothing to do.
"We are not in favor of this operation, we say it with a lot of respect for Couche-Tard and for Carrefour", said the French Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire, speaking to Bfmtv-Rmc . "It is a polite 'no', but clear and definitive", added the minister, who intends, with this choice, to protect the " food security " of the French.
THE COUCHE-TARD OFFER
Let's take a step back. The Canadian company, which has a total of 14,200 points of sale, has put on the plate, for the merger with the French giant Carrefour, up to 16 billion euros, or 25 billion Canadian dollars. The offer, mainly in cash, writes Corriere della Sera , would be around 20 euros for each Carrefour share.
CARREFOUR IN FAVORABLE MERGER?
The figure does not seem to displease Carrefour, who after confirming the exploratory talks with Couche-Tard, said he "will examine the proposal and the project to assess whether it responds to the interests of the group, of its collaborators, and whether it is a useful element for accelerate its growth ".
SHAREHOLDERS READY TO EXIT?
The company's enthusiasm is not surprising. “It should not be underestimated that the two main shareholders of the group, Bernard Arnault and the Moulin family, have been hoping to leave the company for years and therefore for them this purchase proposal from Canadians represents an opportunity. Bernard Arnoux owns approximately 6% of the group. He is the real reference and it is he who proposed the Coe by Carrefour Alexandre Bompard in 2017. The Moulin family owns 12%, but it is much more fragile in the current French economic context ”, writes the expert of large distribution Mario Sassi.
THE NUMBERS OF CARREFOUR
Nor is it surprising that Carrefour appeals to the Canadian. The company has over 12,300 stores, is present in thirty countries with more than 320,000 employees and boasts a turnover (2019) of 80.7 billion euros, with a stock market value of nearly 13 billion euros.
THE GOVERNMENT'S VET BRAKES CARREFOUR ON THE STOCK EXCHANGE
And it is precisely on the stock market that Carrefour is now suffering. The veto on the merger of the French government causes the share to lose 3.98% to 16.42 euros (12.00).
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/economia/carrefour-governo-francese-couche-tard/ on Fri, 15 Jan 2021 14:19:40 +0000.