By Nathan Allen 
 

Bayer AG (BAYN.XE) on Friday rejected a report by German magazine WirtschaftsWoche, which claimed that farmers in the U.S. had filed class-action lawsuits related to the Monsanto-produced Dicamba herbicide.

The WirtschaftsWoche article, which was published Thursday, alleged that farmers in Arkansas and South Dakota had filed new lawsuits against Monsanto in a U.S. district court in St. Louis.

However, Bayer said the report was incorrect as the lawsuits cited have been pending for weeks or months and aren't directed solely at Monsanto.

"They have been known about for quite some time, and media from the United States and Germany have already reported on this matter," Bayer said in a statement.

The article was one of several factors that dragged down Bayer's share price on Thursday, deepening losses suffered on Monday after a California court ruled that Monsanto's popular Roundup and Ranger Pro products presented a "substantial danger" to consumers.

Shares in Bayer listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange are down more than 15% this week, according to FactSet.

Bayer said it is aware of 37 separate suits with 181 plaintiffs filed in the U.S. in connection with Dicamba.

Monsanto and other defendants have refuted the allegations, Bayer said.

Write to Nathan Allen at nathan.allen@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 17, 2018 10:09 ET (14:09 GMT)