JT to buy Indonesia tobacco firm

August 5, 2017

TOKYO- Japan Tobacco Inc. said Friday it will buy Indonesian kretek cigarette company PT Karyadibya Mahardhika and its distributor for a total of one billion dollars.

The Japanese company will aim to expand business in the Indonesian market, the world's second-largest, amid falls in the number of smokers in Japan.

JT will complete procedures to acquire all shares and debts of the Indonesian company and the distributor in October-December this year.

The 2016 sales of the Indonesian company, which mainly produces kretek cigarette products, stood at the equivalent of some 56.0 billion yen. Combined with the sales of the distributor, total sales exceeded 100 billion yen.

JT is actively acquiring foreign businesses.

In 2007, in its largest acquisition, JT bought British peer Gallaher Group PLC for 2.25 trillion yen. Jiji Press