Pfizer Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Ian Read, today sent the following letter to the Rt Hon David Cameron MP, with respect to Pfizer's commitment to the U.K. and its life sciences agenda following the company’s proposal made to AstraZeneca on May 2, 2014.

Sales of the Bayer Group advanced by 2.8 percent in the first quarter of 2014 to EUR 10,555 million (Q1 2013: EUR 10,266 million). Adjusted for currency and portfolio effects (Fx & portfolio adj.), business expanded by 8.4 percent. EBIT rose by 18.4 percent to EUR 2,096 million (Q1 2013: EUR 1,771 million) after net special items of plus EUR 7 million (Q1 2013: minus EUR 45 million). EBIT before special items increased by 15.0 percent to EUR 2,089 million (Q1 2013: EUR 1,816 million).

Pfizer Inc. confirms that it previously submitted a preliminary, non-binding indication of interest to the board of directors of AstraZeneca in January 2014 regarding a possible merger transaction. After limited high-level discussions, AstraZeneca declined to pursue negotiations.

Subsequent to the quarter end, Novartis announced that it had reached definitive agreements with GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) and Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) on a set of transactions. In an inter-conditional transaction with GSK: (1) Novartis agreed to acquire GSK oncology products and to become GSK's preferred commercialization partner for its oncology pipeline for a USD 14.5 billion payment and up to USD 1.5 billion contingent on a development milestone;

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) has been ranked No. 1 on Corporate Responsibility magazine's 2014 list of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens, a leading benchmark for socially responsible investors and other stakeholders. Bristol-Myers Squibb is the only company to achieve the No. 1 ranking three times, including 2009 and 2012, and has ranked among the top 10 each of the last six years.

Novartis has reached a definitive agreement with GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) to exchange certain assets, building global leadership in key segments and focusing the company's portfolio. Under the agreement, Novartis would strengthen the company's innovative pharmaceuticals business by acquiring GSK oncology products, and would divest Vaccines (excluding flu) to them.

Abbott (NYSE: ABT) has announced financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2014. First-quarter 2014 worldwide sales of $5.2 billion increased 0.5 percent on an operational basis and decreased 2.5 percent on a reported basis, including an unfavorable 3.0 percent effect of foreign exchange.