Bayer AG Chief Executive Officer Werner Baumann defended his company’s planned $66 billion acquisition of Monsanto. There are widespread concerns about getting the deal past antitrust regulators. Baumann called the step, “Entirely logical. He added, “These two companies fit together and complement each other ideally.” The deal with Monsanto is just the latest of several high-profile consolidations in the $100 million global crop seeds and pesticide industry over the past 12 months. The European Union antitrust reviews are currently going on for deals involving Syngenta and ChemChina as well as the Dow and DuPont deal. Bauman said Bayer would submit its application to EU regulatory authorities early next year and would submit one to the U.S. by the end of this year. Baumann said again that he expects to close the deal for Monsanto by the end of 2017. Baumann made these remarks as the company announced its third-quarter earnings results. Net profit for the period ending September 30 was $1.3 billion, a 19 percent rise over the previous quarter.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting news service.