AGL 38.16 Decreased By ▼ -0.06 (-0.16%)
AIRLINK 134.19 Increased By ▲ 5.22 (4.05%)
BOP 8.85 Increased By ▲ 1.00 (12.74%)
CNERGY 4.69 Increased By ▲ 0.03 (0.64%)
DCL 8.67 Increased By ▲ 0.35 (4.21%)
DFML 39.78 Increased By ▲ 0.84 (2.16%)
DGKC 85.15 Increased By ▲ 3.21 (3.92%)
FCCL 34.90 Increased By ▲ 1.48 (4.43%)
FFBL 75.60 Decreased By ▼ -0.11 (-0.15%)
FFL 12.74 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-0.62%)
HUBC 109.45 Decreased By ▼ -0.91 (-0.82%)
HUMNL 14.10 Increased By ▲ 0.09 (0.64%)
KEL 5.40 Increased By ▲ 0.25 (4.85%)
KOSM 7.75 Increased By ▲ 0.08 (1.04%)
MLCF 41.37 Increased By ▲ 1.57 (3.94%)
NBP 69.70 Decreased By ▼ -2.62 (-3.62%)
OGDC 193.62 Increased By ▲ 5.33 (2.83%)
PAEL 26.21 Increased By ▲ 0.58 (2.26%)
PIBTL 7.42 Increased By ▲ 0.05 (0.68%)
PPL 163.85 Increased By ▲ 11.18 (7.32%)
PRL 26.36 Increased By ▲ 0.97 (3.82%)
PTC 19.47 Increased By ▲ 1.77 (10%)
SEARL 84.40 Increased By ▲ 1.98 (2.4%)
TELE 7.99 Increased By ▲ 0.40 (5.27%)
TOMCL 34.05 Increased By ▲ 1.48 (4.54%)
TPLP 8.72 Increased By ▲ 0.30 (3.56%)
TREET 17.18 Increased By ▲ 0.40 (2.38%)
TRG 61.00 Increased By ▲ 4.96 (8.85%)
UNITY 28.96 Increased By ▲ 0.18 (0.63%)
WTL 1.37 Increased By ▲ 0.02 (1.48%)
BR100 10,776 Increased By 117.2 (1.1%)
BR30 32,234 Increased By 902.8 (2.88%)
KSE100 100,083 Increased By 813.5 (0.82%)
KSE30 31,193 Increased By 160.9 (0.52%)

The pharmaceuticals sector is facing an intensive period of mergers and acquisitions in the coming years, even if US firms Pfizer and Allergan recently failed to tie the knot, the corporate consultancy firm EY said Monday. "We're going to see a high level of investments and divestments in the pharmaceuticals sector in the coming years," said Gerd Stuerz, analyst at EY. In April, Pfizer and Allergan called off a $160-billion (144-billion-euro) tie-up to create a new world leader in pharmaceuticals ahead of Switzerland's Novartis due to a US crackdown on tax-saving mergers. But that is unlikely to signify the end of a wave of major deals in the sector, EY said.
"Companies will sell off entire divisions or buy new ones in order to strengthen their position," said another expert Siegfried Bialojan. In face of fierce competition, external growth is now key for many companies. "Pharmaceutical groups can only present innovations quickly if they buy these from outside," Bialojan argued. After a record year for M&A (mergers and acquisitions) in the pharmaceuticals sector in 2014, 2015 would have been even better if the tie-up between Pfizer and Allergan had materialised. Bialojan predicted that the total market value of M&A deals could soon reach around $200 billion each year. A number of major deals have been signed in recent years. After its failure to acquire Allergan, Pfizer recently announced plans to buy Anacor Pharmaceuticals, a specialist in eczema treatment, for more than $5 billion.
It is also interested in Medivation, a California-based biotechnology firm specialising in cancer treatments that is also coveted by French group Sanofi and US firm Amgen. Also in the United States, Abbott Laboratories and St. Jude Medical, leading makers of heart care and coronary devices, announced a $25 billion merger to better target the rising levels of cardiovascular disease in ageing populations. German pharmaceuticals and chemicals giant Bayer is offering 55 billion euros for Monsanto, a bid the US firm has rejected for now.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2016

Comments

Comments are closed.