NEWS FROM TÜRKİYE

International Herald Tribune - British American Tobacco Plc. (BAT), the world's second-largest cigarette maker, said it is better placed than most companies to weather the downturn as it reported a 15 percent rise in earnings, at the top of forecasts. Earnings were boosted by the acquisition of cigarettes division of Turkish monopoly Tekel and Denmark-based ST, both completed in the middle of 2008, and also profit growth in all its regions and a 300 million pound lift from the weaker pound against most major currencies.