Celesio Steals A March On Alliance Boots With Panpharma Acquisition

European pharmaceutical wholesale giant Celesio announced on June 29 2009 it had acquired a majority (54%) stake in leading Brazilian drug distributor Panpharma. BMI welcomes the move, noting that an expansion beyond the firm's traditional European borders into a high growth emerging market should provide the company with strong growth potential, while also seemingly stealing a march on rival Alliance Boots. Nevertheless, subsequent internal concerns over the deal mean that its conclusion has yet to be

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