French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his girlfriend, pop singer and former supermodel Carla Bruni, will get married soon, the weekly Le Journal du Dimanche reported on Sunday.

According to the paper, which cites anonymous sources, the wedding is to take place February 8 or 9, just two weeks after Sarkozy celebrates his 53rd birthday. Bruni turned 39 in December.

The weekly reported that, less than one month after they met, Sarkozy gave Bruni an engagement ring designed by Victoire de Castellane of Dior. In return, Bruni gave him a Patek Philippe wristwatch.

In addition, Bruni's mother, Marisa Borsini, told Italian media that Sarkozy had asked her for the hand of her daughter.

"'Mr. President'," Borsini said she had replied, "'I have no reason to withhold it from you'."

If the report is true, the marriage would be Sarkozy's third, and would take place less than four months after his divorce from his second wife, Cecilia, was made public.

Bruni has been married once, to philosopher Raphael Enthoven, who is the father of her son, Aurelien.

The Journal du Dimanche is owned by Arnaud Lagardere, a close friend of Sarkozy's, and is therefore usually well-informed about the French president's plans.

However, it remains unclear what effect the wedding would have on Sarkozy's standing with the French public.

Elected into office on an almost unprecedented wave of popularity, Sarkozy has seen his approval ratings fall despite his almost constant presence in the media.

The most recent poll, carried out by the CSA institute for the daily Le Parisien, showed that 48 per cent of French adults had confidence in Sarkozy's being able to deal with the country's most pressing problems, a steep drop of 7 per cent over the previous month.

One reason for the decline may be the constant media reports of his high-profile private life and luxurious lifestyle, while the French grow increasingly pessimistic over their household finances and the state of the French economy.