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Altria and Philip Morris Consider Reuniting to Face Post-Cigarette Future

  • Divergent paths since 2008 now make merger sense, analyst says
  • Talks come as IQOS device recently approved for sale in U.S.
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Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Tobacco is on the verge of its biggest-ever deal, and it’s not about cigarettes.

More than 10 years after splitting their operations, the world’s two largest tobacco companies, Philip Morris International Inc. and Altria Group Inc., are in advanced talks about reuniting in a blockbuster deal that would be the largest since AT&T Inc.’s bid for Time Warner in 2016.