JERUSALEM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 17, 2000 via NewsEdge Corporation -

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA) announced today that it has established a US$ 135 multicurrency five-year term loan credit facility with a syndicate of banks, primarily based in Europe.

The syndicate was arranged by The Sumitomo Bank Ltd. and Deutsche Bank AG and includes 12 other banks based in: Israel (5 banks), Germany (3 banks), Italy, The Netherlands, Luxembourg and the U.S.

The loan agreement was signed last week in London with the syndicate banks' representatives.

Teva expects to fully draw down this facility later this month, with loans initially denominated in Euros and Pounds Sterling; the proceeds will replace short term debt incurred principally in Europe. This transaction reflects Teva's financial strategy in two ways: increasing exposure to European banking, parallel to Teva's increased presence in Europe, and increasing the long term portion of Teva's total debt.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., headquartered in Israel, is among the top 50 pharmaceutical companies and among the largest generic pharmaceutical companies in the world. Over 80% of Teva's sales are outside Israel, mainly in the United States and Europe. The Company develops, manufactures and markets generic and branded human pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients.

Safe Harbor Statement: This report contains forward-looking statements, which express the beliefs and expectations of management. Such statements are based on current expectations and involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation, the difficulty of predicting FDA and other regulatory authority approvals, the regulatory environment and changes in the health policies and structure of various countries, acceptance and demand for new pharmaceutical products and new therapies, the impact of competitive products and pricing, the availability and pricing of ingredients used in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, uncertainties regarding market acceptance of innovative products newly launched, currently being sold or in development, the impact of restructuring of clients, reliance on strategic alliances, fluctuations in currency, exchange and interest rates, operating results, the impact of the year 2000 issue and other factors that are discussed in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F and the Company's other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

CONTACT: Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. | Dan Suesskind, Chief Financial Officer | (011) 972-2-589-2840 | or | Dorit Meltzer, Director, Investor Relations | (011) 972-3-926-7554 | Web Site: www.tevapharm.com