Kraft Swallows Cadbury for $19.6B

Kraft Foods and Cadbury have reached a deal over Cadbury's upcoming sale after Kraft CEO Irene Rosenfeld inserted more cash into the bid and reduced the number of new Kraft shares, persuading the Cadbury board to approve the deal unanimously and appeasing Warren Buffett, Kraft's largest shareholder, who had expressed concern over the number of new shares issued. The sale, which values Cadbury shares at 840 pence plus a special 10 pence dividend, will create the largest confectionery company in the world, ahead of Mars-Wrigley. Fearing job cuts, Cadbury unions in the UK protested the move, and Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was "determined" to see Cadbury maintain its investment in his country.