Benson & Hedges maker may be acquired by Japanese company
New York: The fifth-largest listed tobacco trader, which makes cigarette brands such as Benson & Hedges, Silk Cut and Mayfair in Britain, the Gallaher Group, has received a takeover approach that may lead to the biggest ever European tobacco acquisition.

Analysts said the most likely takeover offer could be from Japan Tobacco.

Shares of Gallaher zoomed after the company said it may be acquired. The company's American depository receipts surged, bringing its market value to $15 billion. Gallaher's London shares, which closed at an all-time high yesterday, slipped 7.5 pence, or 0.8 pc, to 979 pence. While shares of Japan Tobacco advanced in Tokyo, Imperial Tobacco Group and Altadis also rose to records in Europe.
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Lufthansa sidelines Airbus to place order with Boeing
Frankfurt: Giving European plane maker Airbus a shock, German airline Lufthansa has said it would order 20 Boeing 747-8 planes, with purchase rights for 20 more. Lufthansa said it will start taking delivery of the wide-body planes in 2010 as it expands into North America and Asia.

The airline also approved an order for seven Airbus A340-600 long-haul jets, due for delivery by 2008. The airline already operates 13 of those planes.

Lufthansa said the order for all the planes had a list value of $6.9 billion. Boeing said the 20 firm orders had a $5.5 billion value at list prices. The move was more striking considering that Airbus parent company, European Aeronautic Defence & Space, is a Franco-German operation.
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