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• Philip Morris sells Miller to SAB in $5.6 bln deal 

Shares in Philip Morris climbed to a 52-week high Thursday after the food and tobacco giant announced the sale of its Miller Brewing subsidiary to South African Breweries PLC in a $5.6 billion deal that will create the world's second largest brewer.

The two companies have been negotiating the Miller deal for several months. SAB has also been named as a possible buyer of Australian, Latin American and European brewers in recent months, including the U.K.'s biggest brewer Scottish & Newcastle.

"The transaction represents a new chapter in our development, taking SAB Miller to the number two position globally, and positioning it to be a major participant in the ongoing consolidation of the global beer industry," Graham Mackay, chief executive of South African Breweries, said in a statement.

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