The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that Alimentation Couche-Tard is not considering a hostile takeover bid for Japan's Seven & i, the Nikkei business daily quoted the Canadian suitor's chairman and co-founder, Alain Bouchard, as saying. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says that in an interview with Japanese media conducted in Canada on Thursday, Mr. Bouchard said a hostile bid "was not among factors being considered," indicating the company's intention to secure an amicable acquisition deal, the Nikkei reported. Couche-Tard, which competes with Seven & i in the North American gas station market, in August made an initial bid to take over the Japanese retail giant. It later raised its offer to $47-billion (U.S.), in what would be the largest-ever foreign takeover of a Japanese company. Seven & i, which operates more than 80,000 7-Eleven convenience stores around the world, is caught in a three-way tug-of-war between Couche-Tard, Seven & i's founding family, which is proposing a management buyout, and company management. Asked whether Couche-Tard could raise its bidding price, chief executive officer Alex Miller said, "The current proposed price is attractive for all stakeholders."