UPDATE 3-Deals of the day -- mergers and acquisitions

** Megha Mittal will buy insolvent German luxury fashion house Escada ESCG.DE for an undisclosed price, the company said on Thursday. [ID:nL5537225]

** Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson (ERICb.ST) expects to close its acquisition of key assets of bankrupt Nortel Networks Corp (NRTLQ.PK) very soon, a senior company executive said. [ID:nL5576811]

** With China's President Hu Jintao visiting Malaysia next week, speculation is swirling that the Malaysian government may finally seal a deal to sell 10 percent of planter Sime Darby (SIME.KL) to a Chinese group. [ID:nKLR164838]

** Critical Information Group CIG.L has been given a Dec. 7 "put up or shut up" deadline to make a bid for British business publisher Centaur Media Plc (CAU.L), the UK's Takeover Panel said. [ID:nBNG272075]

** VEM, the owner of German generic drugmaker Ratiopharm, said it was satisfied with the first-round offers received for the forced sale of the unit, indicating that bidding could turn competitive. [ID:nL5415477]

** Deutsche Telekom AG's (DTEGn.DE) T-Mobile UK and France Telecom SA's (FTE.PA) Orange signed an agreement to combine their British units in a joint venture on Thursday, two months after both companies announced the plan. [ID:nL5241342]

** Liechtenstein's LGT bank and a group led by a former UniCredit Bank Austria (CRDI.MI) manager are both in talks to buy Constantia Privatbank, five sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. [ID:nL5437281]

** Turkey's Privatisation Administration will hold its final tender for three electricity distribution grids on Friday with companies that submitted bids last month, the board said. [ID:nL5423710]

** Germany's Otto, the world's largest mail-order company, has struck a deal to buy the Russian business and trademark rights of its insolvent local peer Quelle, it said. [ID:nL5423531]

** Swedish biotechnology group Biovitrum BVT.ST said it had signed a deal to buy drug firm Swedish Orphan, jointly owned by holding company Investor AB (INVEb.ST) and private equity firm Priveq. [ID:nL5662522]

** The Bronfman-Schron group is not in talks to sell its stake in Israel Discount Bank (DSCT.TA), a spokesman said after a report that controlling shareholders had received an approach. [ID:nL5451935]

** British mobile phone operator Vodafone Group (VOD.L) said it was ready to talk to Ghana about its purchase of a controlling stake in Ghana Telecommunications (GT) last year. [ID:nL5466920]

** Canada's Agrium Inc (AGU.TO) sweetened its hostile bid for U.S. rival CF Industries (CF.N) to $4.52 billion, the latest twist in a three-way takeover battle, but the offer failed to impress CF's investors and the company's shares fell 8.4 percent. [ID:nN0599370] (Compiled by Tina Kwan in Singapore and Shobhana Chadha and Fareha Khan in Bangalore)