After a three month search for the highest bidder, the Nanterre trade court has selected Israel's ELCO ($1.1 bn turnover in 2000) to acquire BRANDT, since the former's bid provided the best guarantees in terms of employment and was on the only bid to keep the trading and industrial arms of BRANDT in a single unit. The other three bidders were Turkey's ARCELIK-BEKO, Italy's CANDY and the US's WHIRLPOOL. See inter alia IE of 8 November.