Shares in Seven & i (3382.T) rose 3% in Tokyo on Friday as the Japanese retailer said it was in talks to buy a stake in ​Polish convenience store operator Zabka Group (ZAB.WA).

The 7-Eleven owner is considering acquiring ‌Zabka shares held by funds, with the investment likely to total several hundred billion yen (several billion dollars), Nikkei reported.

A deal would extend Seven & i's reach into Eastern Europe, beyond its strongholds in ​Japan and North America, as the retailer seeks to grow its business under ​CEO Stephen Dacus, who took the helm last year.

"Amid overall market ⁠weakness due to falling semiconductor stocks, defensive sectors centered on domestic demand are ​being bought," said Naoshi Matsumoto, an analyst at Yamawa Securities.

Aeon (8267.T), Japan's largest retailer, ​also climbed 3% while memory chipmaker Kioxia (285A.T) fell 15%. Warsaw-listed Zabka, which has more than 13,000 stores in Poland and Romania, climbed 11% overnight on the news.

In 2021, Seven & i acquired ​Speedway petrol stations, extending its position in the U.S. It already has outlets in ​three Nordic countries and has positioned Europe as a "fourth pillar of growth".

Seven has been struggling to improve ‌its ⁠flagging business following a tussle with Canadian rival Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.TO), which had sought to take it over in what would have been Japan's largest-ever foreign buyout.

The retailer has been under pressure from investors due to lacklustre returns and faced calls to focus ​on its core ​convenience store business. ⁠Last year it agreed to sell off its supermarkets business to private equity firm Bain Capital.

SoftBank Corp (9434.T) and mobile payments ​operator PayPay (PAYP.O) are in talks to invest several hundred billion ​yen in ⁠Seven & i with Sumitomo Mitsui Card also potentially taking a stake, Bloomberg News reported last week.

A partnership reflects "a history of digital defeat" and amounts to Seven & i "buying ⁠takeover defense ​with shareholders' money," Bernstein analysts wrote in a ​note.

"Seven is plugging its largest remaining weakness with outside capital and installing friendly shareholders as a ​takeover countermeasure," the analysts wrote.