Anheuser-Busch backs down, accepts takeover bid: reports

NEW YORK (AFP) — US brewing giant Anheuser-Busch has finally backed down in the face of entreaties by its Belgian-Brazilian rival InBev and agreed to a nearly 50-billion-dollar purchase offer that will create the world's largest beer company, media reports said.

The Anheuser-Busch board of directors, which met on Sunday, decided to accept InBev's improved purchase offer, which it had been resisting for three months, The Wall Street Journal and The Financial Times reported on their websites.

The 70-dollar-a-share reported deal represents an improvement from a 65-dollar-a-share offer made by InBev initially. ...