Portugal to Sell Further 25% of Tabaqueira to Philip Morris (fwd)

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

Portugal to Sell Further 25% of Tabaqueira to Philip Morris
Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 8/12/99

Lisbon, Aug. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Portugal said it will sell another 25
percent of tobacco company Tabaqueira-Empresa Industrial de Tabacos SA to
the Portuguese unit of Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco
company.

The sale would boost the unit's stake in Tabaqueira to 90 percent.

It didn't set a time or price for the sale to PMM SGPS SA, a company in
which Grupo Jorge de Mello, a holding company for the Mello family, one of
Portugal's richest, also owns a stake. Portugal sold 65 percent of
Tabaqueira to PMM for 33.15 billion escudos ($176 million or 165 million
euros) in 1996.

The government, following today's weekly cabinet meeting, said it will
sell the remaining 10 percent to small investors, Portuguese emigrants and
Tabaqueira employees. It didn't set a time or price for that sale, either.