In February Nufarm, an Australian agrochemical maker, won approval for its acquisition of AH Marks, one of Britain's oldest chemical companies, which has a valuable portfolio of herbicides.

ECONOMIST: No matter how bad things get, people still need to eat

OrbiMed Managing Partner Samuel Isaly was unhappy with the board's approval of the Orapred acquisition.

FORBES

The loan to quarry owners Welsh Slate helped speed up the acquisition of the site, after planning approval was granted in December.

BBC: Penrhyn Quarry wins Welsh government loan help

Federal regulators expedited their approval of Wells Fargo's acquisition of Wachovia .

ECONOMIST: Business this week

Huawei Technologies Co. reversed course and withdrew its attempt to win U.S. approval for a small but controversial acquisition it completed last summer.

WSJ: Huawei Drops Attempt to Buy U.S. Technology Assets From 3Leaf

In a report, the development bank said India's recent decision to set up a ministerial panel to expedite clearances for large projects and the federal cabinet's approval to a proposed law that aims to simplify land acquisition procedures are steps in the right direction.

WSJ: ADB Expects Indian Economy to Expand 6%

If ICE wins approval for its NYSE Euronext bid, CME would be likely to seek an acquisition to level the playing field.

FORBES: Asia The Next Frontier For Stock Exchange Consolidation

The acquisition has been approved by the board of directors of each company and is subject to regulatory approval.

FORBES: Magazine Article

The New York Stock Exchange ruled that the proposed acquisition of a 19.8% stake in Sovereign Bancorp by Banco Santander Central Hispano did not need the approval of Sovereign's shareholders.

ECONOMIST: The X-factor