Philip Morris and Altria call off merger talks

US tobacco giants Philip Morris and Altria have been in merger discussions to become one company however merger talks have now been called off

The two tobacco giants decided to discuss merger talks to save on lawsuits as after a decade the two companies have been forced to split the costs in two.

Altria handles Marlboro cigarettes and Philip Morris handles international sales.

Altria chief executive Howard Willard said, “While we believed the creation of a new merged company had the potential to create incremental revenue and cost synergies, we could not reach agreement.”

Philip Morris chief executive Andre Calantzopoulos said, “After much deliberation, the companies have agreed to focus on launching Iqos [a heated tobacco product] in the US as part of their mutual interest to achieve a smoke-free future.”