British chemicals firm Croda ends merger talks with Ashland - source - Reuters News
07-Feb-2018 14:54:21
By Ben Martin
LONDON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - British specialty chemicals maker Croda International Plc CRDA.L has ended talks with U.S. peer Ashland Global Holdings Inc ASH.N about a possible merger, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.
The unsuccessful deal talks show that Ashland is viewed among its rivals as a potential target for consolidation in the sector, following the initial public offering (IPO) of its automotive lubricants unit Valvoline Inc VVV.N in 2016.
Croda, which has a market value of 5.6 billion pounds ($7.79 billion), ended talks with Ashland last month, the source said.
Details of the terminated discussions were not available.
Ashland, which has a market value of $4.5 billion, is active in more than 100 countries providing chemicals products to various industries including automotive, energy and construction.
Ashland did not respond to a request for comment.