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US: Jim Beam merger to throw Japan into bourbon trend

By  |  March 19, 2014

US regulators offered approval to Japan distillery Suntory Pacific to acquire Jim Beam, the world’s fourth-place premium spirits company, in a deal that Suntory helps will catapult the company into the popular US bourbon trend.

According to reports, authorities cleared the $16 billion buy as bourbon prices continue to spike, having found no evidence the deal would raise prices even further than they would on the market. Part of the rise in bourbon’s popularity, reports say, can be attributed to the US’s recent resurgence in its interest for cocktails.

The deal would allow the Japanese firm to get a piece of the market that cannot be grabbed elsewhere, as law requires bourbon to be produced only in the US, say reports.

The deal, which was cleared in the US earlier this month, still requires approval in the EU. The parties said they expect to finalize the deal in April, though reports have not confirmed whether that timeline is still anticipated.

Full Content: Gnomes National News Service

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