* Q4 sales rise 9.3 percent to 7.67 bln euros
* Q4 French hypermarket sales fall 8.4 percent
* Q4 France sales flat, international sales rise 29.4 percent
* Confirms sees 2008 trading profit increase (Adds detail)
By James Regan
TOULOUSE, France, Jan 14 (Reuters) - French supermarket group Casino posted a 9.3 percent rise in fourth-quarter sales as expansion in the Netherlands and growth in Asia and South America made up for flat revenue at home.
Quarterly revenue rose to 7.67 billion euros ($10.2 billion) from 7.02 billion in the year-ago period. Full-year sales met the 28.7 billion average of estimates by 18 analysts polled by Reuters Estimates.
But sales in France were flat, with revenue at its Geant hypermarkets dropping 8.4 percent to 1.6 billion euros. Discounters Franprix and Leader Price benefited from changing spending patterns with a 6.3 percent rise in quarterly sales.
"Nearly two-thirds of net sales are generated by convenience and discount formats, which are preferred by shoppers who are increasingly price-sensitive or looking to limit the size of their average basket," Casino said in a statement on Wednesday.
Outside France, sales rose 29.4 percent to contribute 35 percent of the total, helped by its purchase of Dutch supermarkets group Super de Boer.
The group confirmed its target for further growth in trading profit for 2008.
Casino is due to publish full-year results on March 5. Retailers are having to wrestle with the impact of an economic downturn that is prompting shoppers to curb spending as business and consumer confidence plunges.
Data on Wednesday showed German economic growth slipped to a three-year low in 2008.
There was also more gloom on the other side of the Atlantic as U.S. December retail sales figures showed a steeper-than-expected 2.7 percent decline.
Earlier on Wednesday, German retailers Arcandor and Douglas reported steady sales in the Christmas quarter but both saw their share prices drop as they gave cautious outlooks given the economic slowdown.
Super de Boer said on Tuesday that comparable sales growth slowed to 1.7 percent in the fourth quarter, adding that it would focus on discounting and promotions this year.
Larger French rival Carrefour is expected to post flat or slightly higher fourth-quarter sales of 25.3-26 billion euros after the market closes on Thursday, according to a poll of seven analysts.
Carrefour, confirmed on Monday as the world's second-biggest retailer in a Deloitte study, cut its earnings forecast and trimmed its sales target for 2008 in mid-December, blaming a downturn in consumer spending and the cost of promotions aimed at maintaining market share.
Casino meanwhile received a boost last month when it announced it had agreed with Galeries Lafayette to postpone the latter's option to force Casino to buy its 50 percent of their Monoprix supermarket joint venture. (Editing by Marcel Michelson)