Dutch-born Marijn Dekkers tapped to take over German drug-maker Bayer in 2010

September 25th, 2009 BERLIN - Germany's second biggest domestic news agency, DDP, said Friday it was negotiating to buy the German-language service of US news agency Associated Press. DDP owners Peter Loew and Martin Vorderwuelbecke said the agency was also interested in a long-term agreement on an exchange of editorial content with AP.

September 3rd, 2009 Dainippon of Japan acquires US drug maker SepracorTOKYO — Japanese drug company Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co. is acquiring U.S.

August 19th, 2009 Movers roundup: ASM International, La-Z-BoyAmong the stock activity stories for Wednesday, Aug. 19, from AP Financial News: NEW YORK (AP) — A Goldman Sachs analyst upgraded ASM International NV and added the Dutch maker of semiconductor equipment and materials to Goldman's Pan-Europe Conviction Buy List, sending the company's shares higher.

August 4th, 2009 Great-granddaughter of last German emperor diesBERLIN — Princess Felicitas von Preussen, the great-granddaughter of the last German emperor, has died, her family said Tuesday. She was 75. Von Preussen died Saturday in Wohltorf, near Hamburg, the family said on its Web site, www.preussen.de.

July 30th, 2009 Fire guts replica of 17th-century tall shipAMSTERDAM — Fire consumed a replica of the 17th-century flagship of the Dutch East India Company in the northern Netherlands on Thursday. The three-mast tall ship, which was built in the 1980s, was moored at Holland Village in Nagasaki, Japan, for many years before it returned to the northern Dutch port of Den Helder in 2003 and became a tourist attraction.

July 29th, 2009 Germany's Bayer says Q2 profit down 7 pctBERLIN — German pharmaceutical and chemical company Bayer AG said Wednesday that its second-quarter profit slipped 7 percent as sagging sales for its plastics division offset better results from its health-care products. The Leverkusen-based maker of Aspirin and the birth control pill Yasmin said net profit for the April-June period declined to euro532 million ($757 million) compared with euro574 million for the same quarter a year earlier.

July 24th, 2009 Merck Q2 net profit falls 48 percent to euro109 MFRANKFURT — German drug and chemical maker Merck KGaA said Friday its second quarter net profit fell 48 percent as higher research costs and one-time effects from the acquisition of Serono weighed on the bottom line. The Darmstadt-based company reported a net profit of euro108 million ($153 million) in the April-June period compared with euro207 million a year earlier.

July 22nd, 2009 P&G drug-business sale talks advance, reports sayCINCINNATI — Talks on a sale of Procter & Gamble Co.'s pharmaceutical business are reportedly advancing. The Wall Street Journal in Wednesday's editions cited unidentified people familiar with the matter who say several potential buyers include specialty drug maker Warner Chilcott Ltd., and private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP, and that a possible sale price is some $3 billion.

July 14th, 2009 Batch of drug central to Jackson probe recalledLOS ANGELES — Federal drug enforcement officials have contacted the maker of the powerful anesthetic propofol (PRO-puh-fall) as part of their investigation into Michael Jackson's death. A spokeswoman for Teva Pharmaceuticals says the Drug Enforcement Administration asked the company about a specific batch of the drug.

June 23rd, 2009 Pirates free cargo ship near Somalia, crewman deadTHE HAGUE, Netherlands — The Dutch Defense Ministry says Somali pirates have released a hijacked cargo ship aboard which one crew member was fatally shot. The ministry says Dutch marines are escorting the MV Marathon to a safe port.

June 17th, 2009 Watson Pharma to buy Arrow group for $1.75BNEW YORK — Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Wednesday it will buy smaller generic drug maker Arrow Group for $1.75 billion in cash and stock.

June 7th, 2009 Dutch navy escorting freed Nigerian tugboatTHE HAGUE, Netherlands — Somali pirates have released a Nigerian tugboat they hijacked 10 months ago and a Dutch navy ship is escorting it to a safe harbor, the Dutch Defense Ministry said Sunday. Defense Ministry spokesman Lt.

May 1st, 2009 Armed robbers steal paintings from Dutch museumTHE HAGUE, Netherlands — Masked gunmen stole two paintings from a Dutch museum Friday, including a work by surrealist Salvador Dali, officials said. Police said several robbers threatened a guard at the Scheringa Museum for Realism in Spanbroek with a gun before making off with two paintings.

March 30th, 2009 MUMBAI - Leading drug maker Ranbaxy Laboratories Monday reported a net loss of Rs.1,044.8 crore ($204 million) for 2008 as against a net profit of Rs.617.7 crore in the previous year. However, the company's total income went up 9.85 percent to Rs.4,681.7 crore in 2008 from Rs.4,261.9 crore in 2007.

February 11th, 2009 BERLIN - The governments of Germany, Britain and The Netherlands have pledged to increase cooperation on countering Islamic extremism, at the opening of a joint symposium. The opening event Wednesday was attended by German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, his British counterpart, and a representative of the Dutch interior ministry.