Philip Morris pinched for US$10 billion

CONSUMER FRAUD The tobacco giant was fined by an circuit court judge who said the firm misled consumers into thinking that its `light' cigarettes were less harmful

NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE , MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS

"In my view, Philip Morris USA defense on appeal might well be successful," Martin Feldman, a tobacco analyst at Merrill Lynch, said, "but until that point these lights claims are now particularly challenging for PMUSA and the other tobacco defendants."

"In essence, for both the industry and investors in the industry this is a new category of claim to have to worry about," Feldman said.