Analyst Predicts Discount Cigarette-Makers Will Hound Major Tobacco Companies.

Byline: Brian Louis

Jul. 12--Small companies that make so-called deep-discount cigarettes will probably pressure profit at R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and other major tobacco companies for at least the next two years, a senior analyst said yesterday.

The big manufacturers also likely to lose more market share and see more credit-rating downgrades, he said.

"We think that they're (discounters) going to remain a threat for the industry," said Christophe Razaire, a vice president and senior credit officer at Moody's Investors Service in New York.

"We believe that they're going to keep a cost advantage for the next couple of years at least," he …