Citi: Philip Morris Int'l Raises Prices in Spain

Source from:  Associated Press 01/14/2009

NEW YORK (AP) -- Philip Morris International Inc. raised cigarette prices in Spain over the weekend, a move that is likely to benefit the entire industry, a Citigroup analyst said Tuesday. A pack of Marlboros now costs 3.10 euros, an increase of 3 percent. Philip Morris International raised the prices on Saturday. "No other company has yet announced they will follow suit, but we are confident they all will," Citi analyst Adam Spielman wrote in a note to investors. Spielman said the other major international tobacco players -- including British American Tobacco PLC, Imperial Tobacco Group PLC and Japan Tobacco Inc. -- are likely to benefit from the price hike. Spielman said Philip Morris International is likely to lose some market share but that it should make up for that loss with better margins. "We welcome the price rise, but would have rather seen more," Spielman wrote. Philip Morris International, which has offices in Lausanne, Switzerland, and New York, is the biggest non-governmental tobacco company in the world, after state-controlled China National Tobacco Corp. It was spun off from Altria Group Inc., which still owns U.S.-based Philip Morris USA, in March of last year. Shares rose 81 cents to $42.64 in morning trading. Enditem