Why Should I Register and Submit Results?.Takeda President Yasuchika Hasegawa told a news conference that he wants Takeda to become one of the world’s top three oncology companies by 2020. Its plan is for Millennium to operate as an independent unit.

Takeda plans to retain Millennium’s senior management and as many employees as it can. The Millennium deal, which would add blood cancer drug Velcade to Takeda’s portfolio, was reached in just two months of negotiations. Major drug companies, including Takeda, need to develop new drugs before their patents expire,” said Kumi Miyauchi, an analyst at the Daiwa Institute of Research. joint venture TAP Pharmaceutical Products, which would give Takeda the blockbuster heartburn drug Prevacid. And last month it said it might pay Abbott Laboratories Inc ABT.N up to $1.5 billion under an agreement to split their U.S. Takeda recently agreed to buy Amgen Inc's AMGN.O Japanese subsidiary. Late last year Eisai Co Ltd 4523.T agreed to acquire cancer specialist MGI Pharma Inc for $3.9 billion the deal was completed in January. The Millennium acquisition is the latest in a flurry of M&A activity by Japanese drugmakers. patent on its top-selling diabetes drug, Actos, expires in 2011. Takeda, Japan’s largest drugmaker, has long been under pressure to use its $10 billion war chest to strengthen its pipeline before a U.S. Shares of Human Genome were up 7.5 percent in late morning trading, Amag was up 2.5 percent, and BioMarin was up 3.4 percent. 'On our list, we especially highlight BioMarin Pharmaceuticals Inc BMRN.O, Human Genome Sciences Inc HGSI.O and Amag Pharmaceuticals Inc AMAG.O as good strategic fits for a number of capable and motivated acquirers.' 'While today's news is obviously positive for Millennium holders, we anticipate considerable spill-over into other names in mid-cap biotech,' said Christopher Raymond, an analyst at Robert W. The deal is the latest in a series of acquisitions in the biotech sector, as drugmakers scramble to secure promising pipelines and technologies developed by smaller companies, and it could spur a further wave of merger activity. Millennium’s shares rose $8.15 or nearly 50 percent on Thursday to $24.50. Takeda agreed to pay $25 a share in cash, or 53 percent above Millennium’s closing share price on Wednesday of $16.35. for around $8.8 billion in a friendly takeover aimed at boosting the Japanese firm's oncology business. Japan's largest drug maker,said it would buy Massachusetts-based Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. Takeda Pharmaceutical President Yasuchika Hasegawa speaks to Reuters reporters during an interview in Tokyo, April 11, 2007.

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