July 3 (Bloomberg) -- South Africa’s National Treasury is reviewing the criteria used to classify whether companies trading on Johannesburg’s stock exchange are foreign companies, Business Report said, without saying where it got the information.

The review was triggered by British American Tobacco Plc’s listing on the exchange last year, the Johannesburg-based newspaper said.

The tobacco company’s share sale was classified as an “inward listing” which meant South African investors were subjected to exchange control restrictions when trading the stock and the exchange could not include the company in any of its indexes, Business Report said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Mike Cohen in Cape Town at mcohen21@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: July 3, 2009 02:20 EDT