SABMiller says agrees mega takeover by rival brewer AB InBev

[LONDON] British brewer SABMiller announced Tuesday that it had agreed a takeover by Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's biggest beer producer, in a deal worth about £71 billion (US$109 billion, 96 billion euros).

Belgian-Brazilian group AB InBev, the maker of Budweiser and Stella Artois lagers, struck a deal with the maker of Foster's and Grolsch at the fifth time of asking.

"The boards of AB InBev and SABMiller announce that they have reached agreement in principle on the key terms of a possible recommended offer" priced at an improved £44 per SABMiller share, the British group said in a statement to the London Stock Exchange.

The deal is higher than a fourth bid tabled Monday worth about £43.50 a share.

At £44 a share, the all-cash offer is a premium of about 50 percent to SABMiller's closing share price on September 14, or final business day prior to renewed speculation of an approach by AB InBev.

SABMiller, the world's second largest brewer, claimed the previous bids undervalued the company, upping the pressure ahead of Wednesday's regulatory deadline by which time its rival would have had to make an official offer or walk away for at least six months.

AFP