PARIS, Feb 3 (AFP) - Carrefour, the second biggest retailer worldwide, said Thursday that chief executive Daniel Bernard had resigned after 12 years at his post, with Jose-Luis Duran and Luc Vandevelde taking over at the group.
Duran will be the management board chief, while Vandevelde will lead the supervisory board, Carrefour said in a statement.
Carrefour shares gained 1.98 percent to 40.24 euros on the Paris stock exchange, where the CAC 40 index of leading shares closed down 0.58 percent.
Speculation on Bernard's departure had been rife all day, following a report in French business newspaper La Tribune that a change in Carrefour's management would be announced shortly.
Analysts at French bank Societe Generale had upgraded Carrefour to "buy" from "hold" following the reports, noting that such a change in management had been awaited given the current team's loss of credibility.
Societe Generale said that although 2005 was still likely to be challenging for the group, with a need to win back French customers in a competitive environment, recovery was possible with a new, "hands-on" management team.
Vandevelde is the former boss of British retailer Marks and Spencer, which he steered through a restructuring in 2002.
02/03/2005 17:11 GMT - AFP