09.03.2009

Merck & Co. announced that it has agreed to acquire rival Schering-Plough Corp. in a deal worth $41.1 billion.
The combined company will take the Merck name.
The deal would involve some sort of relationship between Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, the largest animal health company in the world, and Merial, the second-largest animal health company. Merck owns 50% of Merial, a joint venture that was established in 1997 in the merger of the animal health companies of Merck and Rhone Merieux, a predecessor to what is now sanofi-aventis.
It was unclear this morning if Intervet/Schering-Plough would be combined with Merial, which operates as an independent, stand-alone company. However, a full merger of Intervet/Schering-Plough and Merial would create an animal health powerhouse with nearly $6 billion in sales.
The latest combination comes only a few weeks after Pfizer Inc. announced it has agreed to pay $68 billion for Wyeth.