Seven West Media has agreed to sell its stable of magazines, which include Marie Claire, Men’s Health and New Idea, to Germany’s Bauer Media for $40 million by the end of the calendar year.

Seven West, which last week announced the sale of its WA radio assets and a merger with regional affiliate Prime Media, says it will use the cash to pay down debt if the competition watchdog approves the Pacific Magazines sale.

The deal includes a lifestyle content sharing agreement and $6.6 million of advertising for Seven West on Bauer Media assets over three years.

“The sale of Pacific Magazines is another major initiative aligned with our strategy to improve balance sheet flexibility and simplify the operating model to enable greater focus on growth initiatives,” Seven West managing director and chief executive James Warburton said.

“The team at Pacific have been at the forefront of our group’s transformation and have done a tremendous job at repositioning their business, but there can be no doubt that there is a greater future within a larger scaled magazine group.”

Shares in Seven West, the operator of the Seven Network and publisher of newspapers including The West Australian, were worth 38.5 cents before the start of trade.

-AAP