TAIPEI - A Taiwanese court has rejected an appeal by French retail giant Carrefour against a fine for misleading advertisements, an official said Friday.

The Supreme Administrative Court upheld the decision against Carrefour for claiming it checked its price lists daily and immediately lowered the price of items found to be more expensive than competing stores, a court official said.

Despite the claim, made on Carrefour's website and in its catalogues, four of its outlets failed to charge the lowest prices, the Fair Trade Commission found earlier.

Following its decision, made in 2006, the commission slapped a fine of 4.44 million Taiwan dollars (138,000 US dollars) on Carrefour for making untruthful and misleading statements on its pricing.

The Supreme Administrative Court agreed with the commission that Carrefour had violated the fair trade law and dismissed its appeal in a final verdict, the official said.

Carrefour, the world's second biggest retailer after Wal-Mart of the United States, currently operates 63 stores in Taiwan.