Look back at pharma news to July 15

By Barbara Obstoj-Cardwell - Editor

Underlying M&A activity appeared to pick up in the second quarter after a slow start to the year, when tumbling equity markets put the frighteners on dealmakers.

Pharma and biotech companies announced transactions worth $22.1 billion, according to EvaluatePharma, a figure achieved without any big deal to pump up the total – AbbVie’s $9.8 billion takeout of Stemcentrx was the largest. This quarterly tally looks pretty respectable when looking back over the last few years, an encouraging sign for an industry concerned about a slowdown.