AstraZeneca lacks products, seeks partners: reports

AstraZeneca Plc, the giant European drugmaker whose US headquarters is in Wilmington, is in "exploratory discussions" with other drugmakers to partner on new medicines, vice president Shaun Grady tells Bloomberg here.  "We're looking across the spectrum, but our focus is late-stage assets" ready for market.

Also, "AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. are the 'worst positioned' to overcome the so-called patent cliff drugmakers will encounter in the next five years, when 9 of the world's 10 biggest drugs lose market exclusivity, Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Tim Anderson wrote in a Dec. 8 note."