AbbVie has said its $46.5bn (€34.1bn) bid for Shire plc offers "compelling" value for Shire shareholders and that it won’t rule out going hostile in its drive to acquire the drugmaker.

US medical device maker Medtronic Inc has said it agreed to buy Dublin-based Covidien Plc for $42.9bn (€31.6bn) and shift its executive headquarters to Ireland in the latest move by US firms to harvest lower corporate tax rates abroad.

MEDTRONIC Inc (MDT), the world’s biggest maker of heart-rhythm devices, said first-quarter profit fell 1.1% as demand for its defibrillators and spinal products declined and costs to produce them rose.

Singapore: Medtronic Inc, the world’s largest maker of heart devices, plans to hire about 600 people in India and China as it seeks to double the sales contribution from emerging markets within five years.