BAT NZ sucks up excise tax hike as annual earnings slip 3.9%

BAT NZ sucks up excise tax hike as annual earnings slip 3.9%
By Paul McBeth July 3 (BusinessDesk) - British American Tobacco Holdings (New Zealand), the nation's largest cigarette company, reported a 3.9 percent decline in annual profit as it absorbed the government's latest hike in excise tax. The local arm of British American Tobacco, whose brands include Pall Mall, Benson & Hedges and Dunhill, reported net profit of $126.5 million in calendar 2014, down from $131.6 million a year earlier, according to financial statements lodged with the Companies Office. Revenue increased 1.5 percent to $1.23 b...