Honeywell scraps offer to buy United Tech

(Reuters) - Industrial conglomerate Honeywell International Inc (HON.N) said it was scrapping its $90.7 billion offer to buy rival United Technologies Corp (UTX.N), citing the company's unwillingness to engage in negotiations.

United Tech last week rejected Honeywell's offer, saying a merger would either be blocked outright, or any synergies would be far outweighed by regulatory delays, required divestitures and customer concerns.

United Tech's shares were down 4.3 percent at $92.60 in premarket trading on Tuesday, while Honeywell was up 3 percent at $104.30.

Honeywell said it strongly disagreed with United Tech's characterization of the regulatory and customer risks associated with a deal.

"We remain confident that the regulatory process would not have presented a material obstacle to a transaction," Honeywell said in a statement on Tuesday.

The two companies have sparred publicly about the deal that, if realized, would create one of the largest U.S. companies with almost $100 billion in annual sales.

Major customers have also weighed in on the impact of a deal on the sector's supply chain. Boeing Co (BA.N) has said it will carefully scrutinize a deal.

(Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)