SABMiller and Molson Coors yesterday agreed to merge their US brewing operations to create a rival to market leader Anheuser-Busch.

SAB and Coors, the second and third-largest US brewers respectively, said the operation would be named MillerCoors and each would have an equal voting interest. SAB, the larger brewer by both sales and profits, would hold a 58 per cent economic stake and Coors, 42 per cent.