Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc and Monsanto Co, the parent company of Searle Pharmaceuticals, have agreed to merge their pharmaceutical interests. They expect to complete the deal within six months.
P&U and Monsanto say that the new company will have one of the strongest sales forces in the global pharmaceutical industry, an expansive product portfolio, a robust pipeline of new drugs and an annual pharmaceutical research and development budget of more than $2bn. The combined company will have estimated 1999 sales of $17bn with a market capitalisation of more than $50bn.
The new company has not yet been given a name.It will be based at Peapack, New Jersey and headed by Mr Fred Hassan, currently chief executive of P&U. The Monsanto agricultural business will become a separate legal entity, with headquarters in St Louis, Missouri.