Japan’s Asahi Group Holdings yesterday said it would buy Independent Liquor of New Zealand for US$1.28 billion, its biggest-ever acquisition as the beverage giant looks to boost its overseas presence.
Asahi, known for its popular “Super Dry” beer, said it will pay NZ$1.53 billion, or ￥97.6 billion, for all outstanding shares in Flavoured Beverages Group Holdings, which entirely holds Independent Liquor, from private equity firms Pacific Equity Partners and Unitas Capital.
New Zealand’s leading ready-to-drink cocktails maker, Independent Liquor is also ranked third in Australia’s alcoholic ready-to-drink market. It is known for its pre-mixed drinks such as Vodka Cruiser and KGB and also makes and markets brands such as Whyte & Mackay whisky, Vladivar Vodka and Carlsberg beer.
Warning: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health
Photo: Bloomberg
The deal is scheduled to be completed by the end of next month, subject to regulatory approval from New Zealand and Australia.
Japanese firms have sought to expand in foreign markets as domestic sales suffer from slow consumption by the country’s shrinking and aging population.
A surging yen has also encouraged Japanese firms to invest abroad, with other beverage makers such as Kirin and Suntory also hunting for foreign purchases.
Asahi already has a foothold in the Australian soft drinks market through Schweppes Australia, acquired in 2009.
The latest deal comes on the heels of Asahi’s binding share purchase agreement to buy 100 percent of the shares of mineral water and juice maker P&N Beverages Australia, the third-largest soft drinks company by volume in Australia. It also plans to acquire New Zealand soft drink maker Charlie’s Group Ltd through a takeover offer.
The deal comes amid heightened activity in the beverage industry. UK-based SABMiller’s US$10 billion takeover bid for Australian beer giant Foster’s Group turned hostile on Wednesday as the world’s second-biggest brewer decided to take its offer directly to shareholders.
SABMiller, which makes beers Grolsch and Miller Lite, said its offer was unchanged at A$4.90 per Foster’s share, or about A$9.5 billion after its initial approach was rejected in June.
Foster’s, which owns Australia’s largest brewer Carlton and United Breweries, yesterday urged shareholders to reject SABMiller’s bid, saying it was not enough money. This was reflected in the firm’s share price, which closed A$0.10 above the SABMiller offer at A$5.00.
“The board of Foster’s, together with its advisers, has carefully considered the proposed offer and intends to unanimously recommend shareholders reject the offer,” the company said.
“The board of Foster’s reiterates its belief that an offer price of A$4.90 per share significantly undervalues the company in the context of a change of control,” it said.
“Foster’s shareholders are advised to take no action and ignore all documents and communications from SABMiller in relation to its proposed offer,” it added.
The US dollar was trading at NT$29.7 at 10am today on the Taipei Foreign Exchange, as the New Taiwan dollar gained NT$1.364 from the previous close last week. The NT dollar continued to rise today, after surging 3.07 percent on Friday. After opening at NT$30.91, the NT dollar gained more than NT$1 in just 15 minutes, briefly passing the NT$30 mark. Before the US Department of the Treasury's semi-annual currency report came out, expectations that the NT dollar would keep rising were already building. The NT dollar on Friday closed at NT$31.064, up by NT$0.953 — a 3.07 percent single-day gain. Today,
‘SHORT TERM’: The local currency would likely remain strong in the near term, driven by anticipated US trade pressure, capital inflows and expectations of a US Fed rate cut The US dollar is expected to fall below NT$30 in the near term, as traders anticipate increased pressure from Washington for Taiwan to allow the New Taiwan dollar to appreciate, Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) chief economist Lin Chi-chao (林啟超) said. Following a sharp drop in the greenback against the NT dollar on Friday, Lin told the Central News Agency that the local currency is likely to remain strong in the short term, driven in part by market psychology surrounding anticipated US policy pressure. On Friday, the US dollar fell NT$0.953, or 3.07 percent, closing at NT$31.064 — its lowest level since Jan.
The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) yesterday met with some of the nation’s largest insurance companies as a skyrocketing New Taiwan dollar piles pressure on their hundreds of billions of dollars in US bond investments. The commission has asked some life insurance firms, among the biggest Asian holders of US debt, to discuss how the rapidly strengthening NT dollar has impacted their operations, people familiar with the matter said. The meeting took place as the NT dollar jumped as much as 5 percent yesterday, its biggest intraday gain in more than three decades. The local currency surged as exporters rushed to
PRESSURE EXPECTED: The appreciation of the NT dollar reflected expectations that Washington would press Taiwan to boost its currency against the US dollar, dealers said Taiwan’s export-oriented semiconductor and auto part manufacturers are expecting their margins to be affected by large foreign exchange losses as the New Taiwan dollar continued to appreciate sharply against the US dollar yesterday. Among major semiconductor manufacturers, ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光), the world’s largest integrated circuit (IC) packaging and testing services provider, said that whenever the NT dollar rises NT$1 against the greenback, its gross margin is cut by about 1.5 percent. The NT dollar traded as strong as NT$29.59 per US dollar before trimming gains to close NT$0.919, or 2.96 percent, higher at NT$30.145 yesterday in Taipei trading
RSS