Carrefour's Turkish operation has revealed that it is looking to further expand its presence in the country after a year that has seen the launch of 38 new stores.

The division, CarrefourSA, has opened 146 supermarkets in Turkey since its launch in 1993, at a total investment of €932.8m.

'Our future plan for Turkey is to continue to grow both organically, by opening new stores, and by making new acquisitions,' CarrefourSA CEO Guillaume Vicaire told Hürriyet Daily News.

'There is a notable potential in Turkish retail as the market is fragmented compared with western Europe,' he continued. 'Whereas here, the ratio of supermarkets is 50 per cent of all shops and the remaining stores are all traditional corner shops, in western Europe supermarkets control 80 per cent of the sector.'

Mr Vicaire added that an expansion would create 7,000 more jobs in Turkey across 36 different provinces.

The France-based retailer had announced earlier in the week that chief executive officer José Luis Duran would be replaced by Lars Olofsson, the Swedish former executive at Swiss group Nestlé.

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