Somerfield's board agreed to a �1.1bn takeover in October

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) said it had taken the step at the request of the company.

Somerfield is in the process of being bought by a private equity group led by property tycoon Robert Tchenguiz.

At the end of November, Somerfield said that its shares would be suspended from 19 to 21 December as part of legal moves to push the deal through.

If the court hearing was successful, Somerfield added, its share listing would be cancelled on 21 December.

Somerfield accepted a �1.1bn ($1.9bn) bid from the consortium, also including Apax Partners and investment bank Barclays Capital, in October.