Imperial tobacco in £11bn takeover bid

Embassy cigarette maker Imperial Tobacco said today it had agreed an £11bn (€16.34bn) takeover offer for Spanish rival Altadis.

Bristol-based Imperial, which first made an approach for Altadis in March, has upped its offer for the Gauloises and Fortuna cigarette group.

Imperial, which also makes Lambert & Butler, said Altadis intended to recommend the offer to its shareholders, which could put an end to months of lengthy takeover speculation.

Attention will now focus on private equity group CVC, which also made an offer in May but ran into problems after its partner PAI pulled out of the consortium.