Trump announces US-Iran talks after calling off strike waveYen strengthens after joint Japan-US currency interventionCeuta death toll rises to 72 as most migrants return to MoroccoIsraeli strikes continue in Gaza as disarmament roadmap stallsChinese chip advances trigger week of global market swingsDrone strikes kill nine in Russia as Ukraine says it hit Saratov refineryIran says Hormuz route talks with Oman near completion as US blockade holdsRights group blames Sudan's army for drone strike on Darfur courtOPEC+ completes rollback of 2023 oil output cutsRosatom reports drone strike meters from Zaporizhzhia reactor buildingTwo water-bomber pilots killed as wildfire destroys homes near AthensAstraZeneca held talks on $400bn Bristol Myers mergerBrent falls below $82 as US holds off on Iran strikesSuicide bomber kills 14 at Pakistani police stationHungary shuts sole nuclear plant as Danube hits record lowEU labelling duty for AI-generated content takes effectBomb kills three at central Moscow restaurantChina drills at Scarborough Shoal and warns Manila of a 'head-on blow'Hackers hit US water systems in at least seven statesUS-backed Venezuela transition talks set to openWildfires around Spokane force 60,000 to evacuateAI funding boom shows signs of strainBeijing draws 'red lines' before trade talks with EU and USIsrael ties Lebanon deal to Hezbollah disarmament after Kafra blastGunmen kill 12 in Nigerian village and seize churchgoersUS restores part of its vaccine and health aidLula launches bid for fourth term against Bolsonaro's sonChina flash flood death toll rises to 25Israeli forces push into Syria's Quneitra provinceEU naval force boards sanctioned Russian shadow-fleet tankerAI policy groups demand federal probe into OpenAI breachModi speeds up informal Indo-Pacific bloc to counter ChinaOrtega scraps elections to cement family rule in NicaraguaUS weighs transfer of Patriot production technology to UkraineTaiwan warns China's hybrid warfare tests whole regionUS troop movements in Iraqi Kurdistan raise drawdown questionsKremlin pushes more Russian men into fighting in UkraineUK farmers warn drought could cause food shortagesTürkiye updates military readiness for Cyprus after UN chief's visitChina's private factory gauge shows weaker growthUS Senate leaders reach funding deal to avert shutdownPaul Weiss's capitulation reshaped US legal resistance to TrumpThird suspect arrested as more graves surface in Zubin PotokUS health secretary tells families to vaccinate against measlesPakistan applies for $10bn US forex facilityStorm leaves two dead and 180,000 without power in ChileMonte dei Paschi explores Banco BPM takeover as Rome plans exitLebanon weighs consequences of Salameh arrestIran-linked Foxtrot network recruits teenagers in EuropeBus collision kills eight in central TanzaniaTrump announces US-Iran talks after calling off strike waveYen strengthens after joint Japan-US currency interventionCeuta death toll rises to 72 as most migrants return to MoroccoIsraeli strikes continue in Gaza as disarmament roadmap stallsChinese chip advances trigger week of global market swingsDrone strikes kill nine in Russia as Ukraine says it hit Saratov refineryIran says Hormuz route talks with Oman near completion as US blockade holdsRights group blames Sudan's army for drone strike on Darfur courtOPEC+ completes rollback of 2023 oil output cutsRosatom reports drone strike meters from Zaporizhzhia reactor buildingTwo water-bomber pilots killed as wildfire destroys homes near AthensAstraZeneca held talks on $400bn Bristol Myers mergerBrent falls below $82 as US holds off on Iran strikesSuicide bomber kills 14 at Pakistani police stationHungary shuts sole nuclear plant as Danube hits record lowEU labelling duty for AI-generated content takes effectBomb kills three at central Moscow restaurantChina drills at Scarborough Shoal and warns Manila of a 'head-on blow'Hackers hit US water systems in at least seven statesUS-backed Venezuela transition talks set to openWildfires around Spokane force 60,000 to evacuateAI funding boom shows signs of strainBeijing draws 'red lines' before trade talks with EU and USIsrael ties Lebanon deal to Hezbollah disarmament after Kafra blastGunmen kill 12 in Nigerian village and seize churchgoersUS restores part of its vaccine and health aidLula launches bid for fourth term against Bolsonaro's sonChina flash flood death toll rises to 25Israeli forces push into Syria's Quneitra provinceEU naval force boards sanctioned Russian shadow-fleet tankerAI policy groups demand federal probe into OpenAI breachModi speeds up informal Indo-Pacific bloc to counter ChinaOrtega scraps elections to cement family rule in NicaraguaUS weighs transfer of Patriot production technology to UkraineTaiwan warns China's hybrid warfare tests whole regionUS troop movements in Iraqi Kurdistan raise drawdown questionsKremlin pushes more Russian men into fighting in UkraineUK farmers warn drought could cause food shortagesTürkiye updates military readiness for Cyprus after UN chief's visitChina's private factory gauge shows weaker growthUS Senate leaders reach funding deal to avert shutdownPaul Weiss's capitulation reshaped US legal resistance to TrumpThird suspect arrested as more graves surface in Zubin PotokUS health secretary tells families to vaccinate against measlesPakistan applies for $10bn US forex facilityStorm leaves two dead and 180,000 without power in ChileMonte dei Paschi explores Banco BPM takeover as Rome plans exitLebanon weighs consequences of Salameh arrestIran-linked Foxtrot network recruits teenagers in EuropeBus collision kills eight in central Tanzania
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Symbolic image: AstraZeneca held talks on $400bn Bristol Myers mergerSymbolic image

AstraZeneca held talks on $400bn Bristol Myers merger

4 sources

AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb discussed a tie-up worth about $400 billion, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Neither company has confirmed the talks.

What happened

  • Reuters reported the discussions the same day, citing a single source and the same valuation.
  • Bloomberg wrote on Monday, 3 August, that AstraZeneca was "said to have explored" the merger, in the past tense.
  • All six reports rest on unnamed sources; none quotes either company.
  • A tie-up of that size would be one of the largest pharmaceutical mergers ever, according to reports.
  • No source gives a price per share, a deal structure or a timetable.

The view from outside

Handelsblatt is the only outlet to characterise the pairing, describing Bristol Myers Squibb as AstraZeneca's American rival. The British and US reports state the talks without that national framing.

What could happen next

  • Whether the talks continue or have already ended is unclear: the reports use different tenses.
  • Neither company has commented publicly; a statement or denial would settle the reports.
  • Terms, structure and the reasons either side had for the discussions remain unreported.
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