BRUSSELS — The European Union approved Merck & Co.’s proposed takeover of Schering-Plough, which would create the second-biggest global producer of prescription medicines.
The EU’s antitrust authorities said Friday that the transaction “would not significantly impede effective competition” in Europe.
The $41.1 billion acquisition of smaller Schering-Plough Corp. will allow Merck to leapfrog to No. 2 worldwide in prescription medicine, just behind Pfizer Inc., which last week bought Wyeth for $68 billion.
The new Merck-Schering company would have about $42.4 billion in annual sales.
The two companies hope to close the deal in the fourth quarter. Shareholders approved it Aug. 7. The deal still needs approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
The EU said the overlap would not pose significant problems in Europe even though both companies have operations in prescription pharmaceuticals.
Merck is a research-driven company that also makes vaccines, while Schering is a health care group also centering on prescription pharmaceuticals as well as over-the-counter and animal health products.
Merck and Schering have been partners for several years on the cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Zetia.
