Brazil’s JBS food unit IPO depends on market -CEO

Thu May 22, 2014 9:32am EDT

Brazil’s JBS SA, the world’s largest meatpacker, will monitor market conditions before moving forward with an initial public offering of its food processing unit JBS Foods, Chief Executive Officer Wesley Batista said at an event on Thursday.

The company said in a securities filing on Tuesday that it planned to list the unit on the Novo Mercado segment of the Sao Paulo stock exchange. A company source told Reuters it expected to raise about 5 billion reais ($2.26 billion).

But Batista was more cautious on Thursday. “The market is not at full steam, we will monitor,” he said. ($1 = 2.2 reais)