China's Ministry of Commerce said it conditionally approved Bayer AG's $62.5 billion takeover of St. Louis, Mo.-based seed company Monsanto Co., Reuters reported, citing a statement from the ministry.
The Chinese agency also ordered Bayer, a German maker of drug and crop chemicals, to spin off some of its businesses, including corn, cotton, herbicide, soybean and vegetable seeds, the report noted.
Bayer recently confirmed that it is in exclusive talks with the Rhein, Germany-based chemicals company BASF SE for the potential sale of its entire vegetable seeds business. Bayer also agreed to sell some of its crop science businesses to BASF for €5.9 billion.
Pending EU antitrust approval, Bayer anticipates closing the acquisition in the second quarter.
