Carrefour sign

Walmart India’s vice-president of corporate affairs, Rajneesh Kumar, has dismissed claims the retail giant is considering the purchase of a number of Carrefour’s Indian cash-and-carry stores. Kumar told CNBC the rumors were “baseless and untrue”.

The response came after CNBC reported Wamart had expressed interest in acquiring at least three of the five cash-and-carry stores Carrefour operates in Delhi, Bangalore, Jaipur, Meerut and Agra.

Carrefour had been locked in sales negotiations with Indian-based firm Bharti Enterprises - which ended its own cash and carry joint venture with Walmart last year – however, talks have collapsed.

CNBC believed the deal would see Walmart inherit the lease deeds for the nominated Carrefour stores, along with their existing employee bases.