Actelion Says U.S. Tax-Inversion Limits Good for Industry

The U.S. government’s move to hamper tax-inversion deals is good for the drug industry because it forces companies to focus on intrinsic business reasons for transactions, Actelion Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Jean-Paul Clozel said.

Since the U.S. Treasury said last month that it would tighten tax rules, three of eight deals that would have shifted American company headquarters abroad for tax-saving purposes have fallen apart. AbbVie Inc. yesterday terminated its planned 32 billion-pound ($52 billion) acquisition of Shire Plc, saying the policy changes undermined the rationale for the purchase.