U.S., Australia reach deal on pharma protection in TPP: Japan media

ATLANTA (Reuters) - The United States and Australia have reached a compromise on the length of monopoly protection allowed for new biotech drugs in a development that could clear the way for a sweeping Pacific Rim trade deal, Japanese media reported on Sunday. The amount of time allowed for pharmaceutical companies to have exclusive rights to the clinical data for biological drugs has been the last major sticking point in the Trans-Pacific Partnership talks in Atlanta. The compromise under discussion would grant a data exclusivity period that would be eight years, in effect, Kyodo reported. That would be in line with a U.S. proposal from last week. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. (Reporting by Kevin Krolicki)