Warner Chilcott may pay $3bn for P&G drug unit

24-Aug-2009 - Woman’s healthcare and dermatology group Warner Chilcott will unveil plans to buy P&G’s prescription drug division for $3bn (€2.1bn) according to a number of media reports.

Amcor halts share trading; is Alcan Pharma Packaging deal close?

17-Aug-2009 - Amcor has temporarily halted trading on the Australian stock exchange, fuelling rumours that the group is finally about to move for Rio Tinto’s Alcan pharmaceutical packaging unit.

Aurobindo enters injectables market with Trident deal

17-Aug-2009 - Generic drugmaker Aurobindo Pharma will add liquid-injectables to its roster of manufacturing capabilities with the purchase of fellow Indian firm Trident Life Sciences (TLSL).

Sanofi to buy Indian vaccine biz

27-Jul-2009 - Sanofi-Aventis is continuing to expand in emerging markets by agreeing to acquire Indian vaccine manufacturer Shantha Biotechnics in a deal that values the company at €550m ($784m).

P&G close to finding buyer for its pharma unit

22-Jul-2009 - Procter & Gamble (P&G) is close to finding a buyer for its pharmaceutical division for around $3bn according to various media reports.

News in brief

Wyeth shareholders OK Pfizer takeover

21-Jul-2009 - Wyeth’s shareholders gave Pfizer’s $68bn (€48bn) takeover a ringing endorsement late yesterday, with 98 per cent voting in favour of the deal.

Alcan talks still on in wake of Bemis deal, says Amcor

20-Jul-2009 - Australian group Amcor has confirmed that talks about a takeover of Alcan’s pharmaceutical packaging business are still ongoing but says that no binding agreement has yet been reached.

Pfizer may bid for Turkey’s Abdi Ibrahim

20-Jul-2009 - Rumours suggest that US drug giant Pfizer is considering a bid for Turkish generics group Abdi Ibrahim as part of its strategy of expanding in emerging markets.

News in brief

Evolvence plans more Indian pharma investment

07-Jul-2009 - Dubai-based investment group Evolvence Capital plans to invest in more India drugmakers, according to a report in the Emirates Business newspaper.

BASF expanding China JV

07-Jul-2009 - BASF and Sinopec are to invest $1.4bn (€1bn) in expanding their Chinese specialty chemical joint venture, adding 10 plants and increasing capacity at three existing sites.

NJ pharma employment down in ‘08

22-Jun-2009 - The number of pharma employees in New Jersey, US fell by 1,400 in 2008, with R&D expenditure, capital investment and product trials also declining, according to a report.

Mega deals not ‘mega’ for Big Pharma R&D long term, says F&S

17-Jun-2009 - As rumours of a failed Sanofi Aventis’ bid for a US rival circulate, F&S’ analysis of M&As is well timed, even if its conclusions will be difficult reading for a Big Pharma sector set on replenishing pipelines via big deals.

Sanofi swoops for Pfizer insulin plant, scuppering MannKind's bid

09-Jun-2009 - Sanofi Aventis will pay Pfizer €30m ($41m) for a former Exubera manufacturing plant in Frankfurt-Höchst, Germany that was due to be bought by inhaled insulin specialist MannKind.

Merge Healthcare to acquire eTrials after Bio-Imaging bid collapses

03-Jun-2009 - IT solutions firm Merge Healthcare has won the race to buy eClinical specialist etrials, beating previous suitor Bio-Imaging Technologies whose takeover bid collapsed on Monday.

News in brief

GSK may move for 51% of Shantha

01-Jun-2009 - UK drug major GSK is considering a bid for a 51 per cent share of India’s Shantha Biotech after European rival Sanofi Aventis pulled out of an acquisition deal last week, according to India’s Economic Times.

UK trade office may check GSK and Pfizer HIV joint-venture

28-May-2009 - GSK and Pfizer’s HIV joint venture (JV) may be subject to an investigation by UK competition watchdog the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), according to various media reports.

BIO 2009: snapshot of an evolving biotech industry

22-May-2009 - in-Pharmatechnologist's Nick Taylor looks back on BIO 2009, an event at which uncertainty about the development of the biotechnology industry’s future shape dominated proceedings.

Pfizer eyes FOBs and small to midsized deals

30-Apr-2009 - Pfizer is monitoring opportunities in follow-on biologics and continuing to look for small to mid-sized deals as it plans for life without Lipitor, global revenues of which fell by 13 per cent in Q1.

Domino increases Portuguese footprint with €7m buy

20-Apr-2009 - Domino Printing is expanding its presence in Portugal through the €7m ($9m) acquisition of Labeljet SA and its subsidiary Marque TDI, which is currently a distributor for the traceability specialist.

News in brief

Sanofi to spend $500m on BiPar

16-Apr-2009 - Sanofi Aventis has snapped up US cancer drug specialist BiPar Sciences for around $500m (€379m), continuing the recent spate of deals that has seen it move for South American generics firms Medley and Laboratorios Kendrick.

China still important for Big Pharma despite M&A slowdown

16-Apr-2009 - Although the downturn has slowed Big Pharma’s investment in China, the country’s wide ranging healthcare reforms and changing economic landscape still provide considerable opportunities says PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

Sanofi beats Teva in Medley melee

15-Apr-2009 - Sanofi Aventis has confirmed it is buying Brazil’s Medley for $664m (€500m), to position it as the largest player in South America’s generics market.

News in brief

Pfizer opens St Louis R&D centre

14-Apr-2009 - Pfizer’s new $200m (€152m) research centre is up and running, bringing to an end the firm’s four year project to amalgamate its existing research facilities in St Louis, Missouri, US.

Cash strapped MDRNA sells CMO unit to Par

07-Apr-2009 - MDRNA is selling its manufacturing business to US generics firm Par Pharmaceuticals in a bid to boost its coffers and complete its transformation into a purely RNAi focused organisation.