EU Extends Review of Imperial Tobacco's Purchase of Altadis

Source from:  By Matthew Newman Oct. 1 (Bloomberg) 10/09/2007

European Union antitrust regulators extended their review of plans by Imperial Tobacco Group Plc to buy Altadis SA. The European Commission, the 27-nation EU's regulator in Brussels, extended the probe by two weeks because the companies offered to make commitments to overcome regulatory objections. The commission, which can approve the transaction, refer it to another antitrust authority or open a four-month extended review, will issue a ruling by Oct. 18 rather than the original Oct. 4 deadline, according to a statement today. The takeover would give Bristol, England-based Imperial a bigger foothold in France and Russia with brands such as Gauloises cigarettes and Montecristo cigars. Cigarette makers have been acquiring brands in the past year to eliminate rivals, reduce costs and close factories as smoking bans cut consumption. Imperial's main British and German markets are shrinking, adding to the allure of Madrid-based Altadis, which gets most of its sales from Spain and France. The Spanish company owns the largest distributors of tobacco in its home market, Italy and Morocco and sells one in four cigars worldwide. Imperial said it aims to expand Gauloises in Africa and Asia and Fortuna in Latin America. Enditem