Less than six per cent responded in favour of accepting the deal.

The Gama proposal led many investors to believe that Casino has no other option than accepting the deal.

Siptu, which announced the results of its ballot tonight, joined eight other trade unions today in accepting the deal.

It will make a full-takeover bid at the same price, conditional on holders of 50 percent plus one Hispania share accepting the deal.

In Paris, Casino issued a statement telling Carrefour that its board could be held "liable" for accepting the deal without Casino's consent.

Despite the changes and record settlement, two out of five FTC Commissioners voted against accepting the deal on the basis that it was too lenient.

Accepting the deal would make Nancy a cheat, because she knew what the outcome would be.