date:Sep 06, 2013
Japan's Suntory Beverage Food (2587.T) is in advanced talks to buy GlaxoSmithKline's (GSK.L) Lucozade and Ribena drinks for more than 1 billion pounds ($1.6 billion), in a deal that would pre-empt an auction of the brands, two people close to the process said.
A deal could be announced in the next few days, one of the sources said on Thursday.
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) - Britain's biggest drugmaker - announced plans in April to sell Lucozade and Ribena, which are big sellers in Britain but lac