Japan Tobacco acquires RJR Nabisco's int'l tobacco unit.

TOKYO, March 9 Kyodo Japan Tobacco Inc. (JT) announced Tuesday that it has agreed to purchase the international tobacco business of RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp. for 7.83 billion dollars (about 940 billion yen) to become the world's third-largest tobacco producer. The purchase is the largest acquisition price ever paid by a Japanese company. JT President Masaru Mizuno told a news conference Thursday night, ''The deal will enable us to acquire many international business bases in a single stroke and face the competition as a world-class player.'' RJR Nabisco has been engaging in the tobacco-marketing business in more than 70 countries. The company's overseas tobacco division has a network of 22 factories in 18 countries with a combined workforce of 15,000 employees. The enlarged JT will be selling 460 billion cigarettes a year. RJR Nabisco's tobacco arm, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., sold 186.7 billion cigarettes in 1998, including such well-known brands as Camel, Salem and Winston. Tobacco demand in Japan is seen to have peaked, with numerous civic groups engaged in waging antismoking campaigns. JT has been focusing its overseas business operations on sales in East Asia. The purchase of the international tobacco business of RJR Nabisco is expected to give JT a foothold to penetrate the promising market in Eastern Europe and other regions. Earlier this month, RJR Nabisco decided to give up its international tobacco business section in view of the floundering performance of the division. The company has since been searching for a purchaser that may offer favorable purchase terms. JT, Japan's former state-run tobacco monopoly, was privatized in 1985. The company has since pursued a business strategy of diversifying into a variety of business fields. JT's business fields have come to cover pharmaceuticals, food and real estate. It logged an unconsolidated net profit of 108.9 billion yen in fiscal 1997 ended March 31, 1998, on sales of 2.62 trillion yen. It employs 20,800 workers. RJR Nabisco is a holding company that has major food and tobacco manufacturers like R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. under its wing. It sold 3.07 billion dollars worth of tobacco in 1998.