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Swedish Match is a Swedish company based in Stockholm that makes snus, moist snuff, and chewing tobacco (with its Red Man brand). These products are known as moist smokeless tobacco. The company also makes machine-made cigars, matches, lighters as well as razors, batteries, light bulbs and tooth picks. Swedish Match operates in nine countries and has approximately 4,395 employees.〔 The products are sold in more than 100 countries worldwide. The Swedish Match share has been listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, large cap segment, since 1996, with the ticker symbol SWMA.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Nasdag OMX Nordic )〕 It is also listed on the OMX GES Sustainability Index Sweden and is traded on BATS Chi-X.〔 In 2014, the group had total sales of 13,305 MSEK and an operating profit from product areas of 3,446 MSEK.〔 In 2014, snus and moist snuff accounted for 38 percent of sales and 62 percent of Swedish Match’s operating profit.〔 ==History== The operations of Swedish Match originate from two companies: Svenska Tobaksmonopolet, a tobacco monopoly owned by the Swedish state and founded in 1915, and Svenska Tändsticks Aktiebolaget (STAB), a match manufacturing company founded in 1917 by Ivar Kreuger (also known as the ”Match King”) in connection with the acquisition of Jönköpings Tändsticksfabrik.〔 In 1992, the tobacco and lights operations were joined in the Procordia Group. Two years later, they were merged into an independent company named Swedish Match, which became publicly listed in 1996.〔 Svenska Tändsticks AB (STAB) In 1917, Ivar Kreuger founded Svenska Tändsticks Aktiebolaget (STAB) in Jönköping (also known as "City of the matches").〔〔 It was a merger between Aktiebolaget Förenade Tändsticksfabriker and Jönköpings & Vulcans Tändsticksfabriksaktiebolag.〔 A year later, STAB was listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange.〔 By expanding through acquisition of government-created monopolies by lending money to the governments, and through mergers with for instance the British match company Bryant and May in 1927, it became the world's largest match manufacturer.〔 In 1930, the company controlled 60 percent of the world’s match production and was the sole owner of match companies in 33 countries.〔 Following the death of Ivar Kreuger in 1932, the ownership structure in STAB changed and a number of factories were liquidated. During 1938, STAB’s share of the world’s matchmaking fell to 20 percent.〔 When the match market declined sharply in the 1950s, STAB looked for new business ventures and acquired more than 50 companies between 1968 and 1976.〔 In 1980, Svenska Tändsticks AB changed its name to Swedish Match to create unity throughout the group.〔 In 1988 the company was acquired by Stora AB and was sold two years later to Nederlight.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title= The companies concerned )〕 After another two years, Procordia acquired Swedish Match.〔 AB Svenska Tobaksmonopolet In 1915, the Swedish government founded AB Svenska Tobaksmonopolet and nationalized all Swedish tobacco production plants. The monopoly was introduced in order to give the government funds to finance the country’s military defense and a new national pension system.〔 During the 1960s, the monopoly on production, import and sale of tobacco was abolished in Sweden. Svenska Tobaksmonopolet was converted to a new state-owned company named Svenska Tobaks AB.〔 In 1971, the ownership of the tobacco group was transferred to Statsföretag AB, a state-owned conglomerate, which in 1984 was renamed Procordia.〔 As a result of the monopoly being abolished and in order to broaden the market, the Dutch cigar company Elisabeth Bas/La Paz (EBAS), the American tobacco manufacturer Pinkerton Tobacco Company (maker of Red Man, a chewing tobacco brand introduced in the US in 1904) and the Dutch cigar producer Willem II were acquired between 1968 and 1989.〔 In 1989, Procodia was listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. Volvo acquired part of Procordia in 1990 and became the principal owner together with the Swedish government.〔 To complement the tobacco business, Procordia, in 1992, acquired the match and lighter company Swedish Match from Nederlight.〔 Swedish Match AB In 1992, the listed company Procordia acquired the match and lighter business named Swedish Match. The operations of Swedish Match were integrated with Procordia United Brands, one of Procordia’s business operations, and was renamed Swedish Match to take advantage of international name recognition. In 1994, Swedish Match functioned as an independent company and was later, in 1996, listed on the OMX Nordic Exchange Stockholm AB and on Nasdaq.〔〔 In 1999, the company sold its cigarette manufacturing to Austria Tabak but is still active as a distributor of cigarettes on the Swedish market.〔 In the same year, Swedish Match expanded its cooperation with (P.T Java Match Factory (Jamafac) ), the biggest safety matches manufacturer in Indonesia, to a joint venture agreement in order to strengthen its position within lights and matches in Southeast Asia. Jamafac was divested in 2005 and now has a license agreement with Swedish Match to produce matches and distribute Cricket lighters in Indonesia.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Annual Report 2005 )〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=About us )〕 In 2009, Swedish Match entered an agreement with Philip Morris International and formed the joint venture company SWPM International for exploring and developing new markets for snus and other smokefree tobacco products outside Scandinavia and the United States.〔http://www.swedishmatch.com/Reports/2009/20090203-swedish-match-and-philip-morris-international-announce-global-joint-venture-to-commercialize-smokefree-tobacco-products-en-1-429789.pdf〕 The companies have an ownership of 50 percent each in SWMP International.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Annual Report 2009 )〕 In 2010, Swedish Match and Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) formed a new company specialized in cigars. Swedish Match brought its entire cigar business (with the exception of U.S. mass market cigars) and pipe tobacco into the new company, while STG transferred all of its tobacco business. The new company took over the name Scandinavian Tobacco Group. Swedish Match became a partner with 49 percent of the company, and the remaining shares are owned by Skandinavisk Holding A/S.〔〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title= Annual report 2010 )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Swedish Match」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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