International grocery and general merchandising retail chain Tesco is in advanced discussions to buy 61 stores in south-east Asia from France’s Carrefour supermarket chain for about $1bn (£620m). Britain’s biggest supermarket is stated to be among a handful of suitors to submit “second-round” bids for the Carrefour stores in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand as it seeks to boost its presence in the fast-growing Asian markets.

Acquiring Carrefour’s stores would significantly expand Tesco’s Asian operations, which include outlets in Thailand, South Korea, China, Japan and Malaysia. Tesco’s biggest Asian market is South Korea, with sales of £4.2bn last year.

The acquisition would follow Tesco’s takeover of other Asian retailers, such as its £958m purchase of South Korea’s Homever discount chain in 2008 and of Japan’s C Two Network discount retailer.

Tesco, which would not comment on the auction, is said to be the favourite to secure the stores because it is the world’s third-biggest supermarket chain and already has a strong presence in Malaysia and Thailand. The retailer’s deep pockets give it the firepower, while the scope for cost-cutting through mergers with its local operations could justify a higher price than its competitors are likely to be able to afford, analysts said.