South Korea-based Lotte Confectionery Co. has entered into a deal to acquire Kazakh confectioner Rakhat JSC.

Rakhat said today (2 July) it will sell 76% of its shares to Lotte for US$156.6m. Lotte will buy the remaining shares by the end of the year.

The deal will help Lotte expand its presence in Central Asian countries. In 2011, it bought a controlling stake in a Pakistani confectioner KS Sulemanji Esmailji & Sons for KRW20bn (US$17.9m).

Rakhat JSC claims to be one of the largest manufacturers of confectionery in Kazakhstan. According to the South Korean Yonhap news agency, the company recorded sales of KRW220bn ($194.1m) in 2012.