Swiss-based Banana giant Chiquita agreed to a settlement with the families of six Americans who were kidnapped and killed by FARC terrorist in the 1990s, Law.com reports in its Daily Business Review. The deal was reached right before jury selection was set to begin in a Florida court.  The families contended that Chiquita paid FARC $200,000 and thus was supporting the group and was responsible for the deaths. Chiquita claimed it was only trying to protect its employees. Terms of the suit were not announced. Details

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Cade, which enforces antitrust regulations in Brazil, approved Bayer AG’s acquisition of agricultural biology company Monsanto. Brazil was seen as a major hurdle for the deal, because the South American nation produces many agricultural commodities.  The companies agreed to Bayer’s $60 billion purchase in September 2016. They had hoped the deal would be completed by the end of 2018. European Union and United States authorities still must sign off the purchase. Details

The Japan Times reports that the foreign ministers to Japan and Mexico have pledged to get the revised Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement rolling as soon as possible. The free trade deal also includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. The pact was reworked after it lost political support in the United States during the 2016 presidential race. Mexico became the first country to make internal changes needed to ratify the pact, the Times reports. Details