Coca-Cola to buy China juice maker for $2.4 bn

US soft drinks giant Coca-Cola said today it planned to buy Chinese juice maker Huiyuan Juice Group in a $2.4 billion deal that would be its biggest acquisition in China.     

Coca-Cola will offer 12.20 Hong Kong dollars ($1.6) per share in Hong Kong-listed Huiyuan, it said in a statement, adding that three shareholders holding a total of 66 per cent in the company had accepted the offer.     

"It is the largest proposed transaction in China and the second largest for the Coca-Cola Company," the company said in an email to AFP.     

Coca-Cola said it intended for Huiyuan, one of China's best-known juice brands, to carry on its business, but that it would later review its operations.     

"Huiyuan is a long-established and successful juice brand in China and is highly complementary to the Coca-Cola China business," said Muhtar Kent, CEO of Coca-Cola Company, in the statement.     

He said the deal was "a unique opportunity to strengthen our business in China, especially since the juice segment is so dynamic and fast-growing in China."     

According to Coca-Cola's Chinese website, its investment in China since 1979 totals C1.25 billion.