Morrisons has stunned the retail world by appointing a relative unknown as its new chief executive.

Irishman Dalton Philips, a former executive for US giant Wal-Mart, takes up the reins at the supermarket chain.

Philips is currently chief operating officer at Canadian food group Loblaw and takes up the position in March, as he looks to fill the shoes of Marc Bolland following his decision to join Marks & Spencer.

Morrisons said he has "tremendous retail pedigree and a wealth of experience from senior retail positions around the world".

Philips, 41, will be one of the youngest chief executives in the FTSE 100 and will be just the third person to run the supermarket chain since 1952, following tenures by Sir Ken Morrison and Bolland.

Morrisons finance director Richard Pennycook was seen by many as the front-runner to the top job, which has caused a stir of speculation since Bolland announced his departure in November.

Loblaw, where Philips has been chief operating officer since January 2007, is Canada's largest food distributor and a 1,000-strong retail chain.

He was chief executive of Irish department store Brown Thomas before that and also previously chief operating officer of Wal-Mart's German operations.

Bolland remains on gardening leave as he stays locked into a year's notice period until November, although it appears a "compromise agreement" to allow him an early exit is being negotiated.

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