Bayer Shares Up After EPA Restates Glyphosate View

By Ruth Bender

Bayer AG's (BAYN.XE) shares are getting a boost from the Environmental Protection Agency's reiteration of its long-held conclusion that glyphosate, the world's most widely used herbicide, is safe when used as directed and doesn't cause cancer.

On Thursday at 1300 GMT shares in the German company were up about 4% against a largely flat DAX, which was just 0.1% in the green. The EPA published its assessment of glyphosate on Tuesday but markets were closed Wednesday in Germany due to a public holiday.

Bayer faces lawsuits from some 13,400 plaintiffs claiming its weedkillers containing glyphosate gave them cancer and the company's shares shed about 30% of their value since it lost the first two trials.

Shareholders have been turning against management's decision to buy Monsanto Co., which exposed Bayer to the lawsuits. Bayer is appealing the verdicts and argues that its Roundup weedkillers and glyphosate are safe.

Another factor driving the group's share price is a German magazine report saying Bayer's supervisory board will meet in two to three weeks to discuss how to win back shareholders' trust after they sent a rare no-confidence vote to the company's management at the group's annual meeting last week, analysts say.

Bayer declined to comment on the German magazine report.

Write to Ruth Bender at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 02, 2019 09:46 ET (13:46 GMT)

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