Abbott and GE have mutually agreed to terminate their contract for the sale of Abbott’s core laboratory and point-of-care diagnostics businesses to GE.

Unable to agree on final terms and conditions of the proposed sale, estimated at approximately $8 billion, Abbott and GE decided to part ways.

According to Abbott, this will have no effect on its previously issued earnings-per-share guidance, excluding specified items, for the full-year 2007 or the second quarter. The earnings outlook for 2008 also remains unchanged.