Syngenta CEO Says Making Good Progress in ChemChina Deal
08 February 2017 - 6:54PM
Dow Jones News
By Brian Blackstone
ZURICH--Syngenta AG (SYT) Chief Executive Erik Fyrwald said
Wednesday that good progress is being made on regulatory approval
of the proposed $43 billion acquisition of the Swiss seed and
pesticide maker by ChemChina and that he expects the deal to close
in the second quarter.
"Each day we grow increasingly confident," Mr. Fyrwald said in
an interview after the company released its 2016 results.
Syngenta said it has received regulatory approval from 13
authorities and that approvals are pending from Brazil, Canada,
India, Mexico, the U.S. and European Union. The European
Commission, the bloc's antitrust regulator, has given itself until
April 12 to decide on the deal, which it is scrutinizing alongside
other deals in the sector, including Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) and
DuPont Co. and one between Bayer AG (BAYN.XE) and Monsanto
Co.(MON).
The decision from European regulators could come before April
12, Mr. Fyrwald said.
Syngenta said Wednesday that its 2016 sales were $12.79 billion,
down from $13.41 billion in 2015. Net income was $1.18 billion,
compared with $1.34 billion in 2015.
"Overall the year was a challenging one for the industry," Mr.
Fyrwald said. Still, the company expects low single-digit growth in
sales after adjusting for currency changes.
(Natalia Drozdiak contributed to this article.)
-Write to Brian Blackstone at brian.blackstone@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 08, 2017 02:39 ET (07:39 GMT)
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