7-Eleven bids $2bn for Casey's stores

America's biggest convenience chain, 7-Eleven, is in talks to buy its smaller rival Casey's General Stores after tabling a bid of $2bn (£1.3bn) for the company.

The offer, which values Casey's at $40 a share, would see the smaller chain's 1,500 stores in the US and Canada join 7-Eleven's 7,100-strong chain. However, the board of Casey's said that although it was prepared to open discussions with its bidder, it believed the offer did not do justice to its true value.

There has also been speculation that another bidder may emerge for Casey's, and the Canadian retailer Alimentation Couche-Tard has been linked to the sale.

7-Eleven is owned by a Japanese parent, but sees the US as its main growth market.