Astra disputes $109 mil.
Executive Summary
AstraZeneca is withholding $109 mil. from the lump-sum payment to Merck to repurchase rights to Astra pipeline following the restructuring of Astra Merck joint venture. Astra believes the sum to be $713 mil.; Merck claims the payment should total $822 mil. "Merck intends to enforce its rights under the agreement with respect to the disputed amount," Investor Relations Director Laura Jordan told an investor teleconference July 23. The firms are currently in arbitration. The difference stems from the firms' differing interpretations of the measured time period of R&D expense to be considered and currency exchange