Germany’s Altana became the latest casualty of Pfizer’s efforts to cut costs on Friday, its shares plummeting 16 per cent after the US pharma group ended a partnership to develop Daxas.

Daxas is crucial to the pharmaceuticals and chemicals group’s efforts to reduce its dependence on ulcer treatment Pantoprazole, known in the US as Protonix, which accounts for about half of Altana’s earnings.