GMO giant Monsanto has rejected a $62bn (£43bn) offer from German pharmaceutical giant Bayer saying the price was too low. Hugh Grant, Monsanto’s chief executive, said the offer was “financially inadequate”, leaving the door open for a potentially higher bid. He said the proposal significantly undervalued the company but said they were open to engage further in negotiations RT reports: Monsanto can “see the logic” of combining with the German corporation, and believes the merger could get the required approval from regulators, sources familiar with the talks told Reuters. However, the St. Louis, Missouri-based company believes its shareholders deserve a better offer. “The deal will allow Bayer to tap growing demand at a time when farmers must boost food productivity to feed an estimated 10 billion people worldwide by the year 2050,” RT America’s Ashlee Banks said, adding that Bayer CEO Werner Baumann hopes that this rationale will win over skeptical investors and overcome anti-GMO backlash. Some Bayer shareholders were critical of the bid, saying the $122 per share was too high already. Monsanto’s shares rose to $107.61 on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday morning, short of Bayer’s valuation. Meanwhile, Bayer’s shares rose by 3.23 percent, reaching 87.15 [...]
