A source told Bloomberg that China-based supermarket operator Wumart Stores Inc intended to buy units from CP Lotus Corp. The person who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet public said the payment would be in the form of stock. A unit of the Charoen Pokphand Group of Thai billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont partly owns CP Lotus.

According to a Bloomberg report, China's retail has seen the need for consolidation as economy had slowed and competition in the retail market had risen with entry of foreign supermarket chains. UK-based Tesco recently announced a joint venture with China Resources early this year. That deal would allow Tesco to merge its stores with that of the Hong Kong-based firm.

Last year, Lotus had 57 retail stores in China. The slowdown in the world's second largest economy and increased competition caused Lotus to lose CNY 392 million in 2012. Its net income, however, increased by 2.7% to CNY 602 million. Its retail network increased to 541 stores as of June 30 this year.