Novartis Ruling To Come Soon?

The European Commission is edging closer to a decision regarding the merger of Ciba and Sandoz of Switzerland to form Novartis. Competition Commissioner Karel Van Miert told the Financial Times that the Commission hopes to decide on the case by the end of the current month but a decision might not be possible before the August recess. The deadline for the ruling is September 10.

Novartis' core business area will be health care and industry observers seem to think that many measures required by the Commission for the merger to go ahead are unlikely to affect the health care business. The concerns seem to be focused on the crop protection business, which will give Novartis a dominant position in that market.

Previous concerns regarding certain parts of Novartis' pharmaceuticals business, such as its position in the osteoporosis and blood pressure markets, appear to have been put aside, reports the Financial Times.