U.S. drugmaker AbbVie will buy Ireland-domiciled Allergan, the creator of Botox. The two companies will have combined sales of over US$48 billion, and generate operating cash flow of over US$19 billion. (Financial Times)

Talking point: This is the latest example of the world’s biggest pharmaceutical companies merging with major competitors to increase their market share. Last week, Pfizer announced plans to buy cancer drug maker Array BioPharma for US$11.4 billion. And, earlier this year, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Celgene—two of the world’s largest anticancer drug companies—announced a US$74-billion merger. For AbbVie—which said it would divest two Allergan drugs to pass the deal—the acquisition is an effort to diversify its revenue sources in the long term. Its patent for Abbvie’s rheumatoid arthritis drug, Humira—the best-selling prescription drug on the market—went off-market in Europe last year, allowing competitors to launch similar drugs in the region. In the U.S., its patents prevent other companies from copying the drug until 2023. AbbVie’s shares fell following today’s announcement.