Japan Tobacco Inc. will pay $450 million for a cigarette maker that operates in Sudan and oil-rich South Sudan, which gained independence this month after a rebellion that lasted almost 50 years.
Haggar Cigarette & Tobacco Factory Ltd. controls 80 percent of the market in Sudan and is also "well established" in South Sudan, JT said in a statement. The purchase values the maker of Bringi cigarettes at 9.9 times last year's underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, Japan Tobacco said.
Japan Tobacco, the world's third-largest publicly traded cigarette maker, is increasing its sales overseas as an aging population and a higher cigarette tax damp demand at home. The maker of Mild Seven, Camel and Winston cigarettes Friday said profit may increase 11 percent this fiscal year after raising prices in Russia and other markets abroad.