Sanofi Will Buy Brazilian Drugmaker

Sanofi-Aventis has undertaken two deals to enlarge its generic drug portfolio and position in Latin America. In the first deal, the French pharmaceutical maker signed an agreement to acquire the Brazilian generic drugmaker Medley in a transaction valued at $665 million. Medley is the third-largest pharmaceutical company in Brazil, with $203 million in sales last year and 1,550 employees. Two-thirds of Medley's sales are in generics. Together with its existing operations and 2,300 employees in Brazil, the acquisition will give Sanofi-Aventis a 12% share of the Brazilian drug market, which is growing 20% annually. Separately, Sanofi-Aventis has acquired Laboratorios Kendrick, a Mexican generic drugmaker that had $35 million in sales last year.