Briefing:

Oct 15, 09:31 AM

Current Headlines: Oracle said that it had made an unsolicited bid to acquire a rival, BEA Systems, for $6.7 billion, an offer that BEA executives rejected as too low. BEA is being pressured to sell by its largest shareholder, the investor and corporate raider, Carl Icahn.

Biogen Idec, the largest biotech company in Massachusetts, is up for sale. The Cambridge firm, valued at more than $20 billion, said it planned to consider offers after multiple "expressions of interest," including one from Icahn.

Originally published by The New York Times Media Group.

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