Kingfisher has appointed former Carrefour chief Daniel Bernard as non-executive deputy chairman, underlining the struggling retail group’s drive towards international expansion.

Mr Bernard, 60, was chairman and chief executive of the Paris-based retail group and world’s second-largest retailer for 13 years. He presided over more than a decade of international expansion until he was ousted just over a year ago after the group’s lacklustre share price and poor performance in its domestic market caught up with him.