Deals of the day- Mergers and acquisitions

(Adds Agrium, ARM, Blackstone)

Aug 30 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2000 GMT on Tuesday:

** Canada's Agrium Inc and Potash Corp of Saskatchewan Inc said on Tuesday they are in talks to merge, a tie-up that would create a global fertilizer and farm retailing giant as the agriculture sector struggles with soft crop prices.

** Shareholders in British technology company ARM Holding Plc approved its sale to Japan's SoftBank Group Corp on Tuesday, marking the end of independence for the chip designer that powered the smartphone revolution.

** Buyout group Blackstone Group LP is in talks to acquire German real estate group Officefirst in a potential 3 billion euro ($3.6 billion) deal, three people familiar with the matter said.

** Siemens and Gamesa have rejected a non-binding offer from General Electric for assets belonging to a wind power venture between Gamesa and Areva , sources close to the talks told Reuters on Tuesday.

** Tokio Marine Holdings Inc is in exclusive talks to buy RHB Bank's general insurance unit in a deal that also includes an agreement to distribute the Japanese insurer's products through the Malaysian lender, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

** The Philippines' Court of Appeals said it has halted the competition regulator's review of a $1.5 billion deal that could strengthen the duopoly of the country's two biggest telecom firms, PLDT Inc and Globe Telecom Inc to buy San Miguel Corp out of the sector.

** China Evergrande Group said it used proceeds from home sales to buy shares in larger rival China Vanke , which is at the center of a rare public Chinese boardroom spat.

** A merger of troubled South Korean shipper Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd and Hyundai Merchant Marine Co Ltd is impossible at present, Yonhap news agency on Tuesday quoted the head of the country's financial regulator as saying.

** Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it has agreed to sell certain assets in the Gulf of Mexico to independent oil and gas company EnVen Energy Corp for $425 million, plus royalty interests.

** China's Anbang Insurance Group has applied for regulatory approval for its planned $3 million acquisition of German insurer Allianz's South Korean business, the Yonhap News Agency reported.

** Japan's top oil refiner by sales, JX Holdings, and third-ranked TonenGeneral Sekiyu are set to finalize details on Wednesday for a new merged company to be formed in April 2017.

** Canadian industrial auctioneer Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc said it will buy IronPlanet, a privately held U.S. e-commerce site for used equipment, for about $758.5 million, as it looks to diversify its portfolio.

** Mondelez International Inc, the maker of Oreo cookies and Cadbury chocolates, said it was no longer pursuing the acquisition of Hershey Co, two months after the U.S. chocolate company turned down its $23 billion cash-and-stock bid.

** Twin Butte Energy Ltd debenture holders voted to reject a takeover bid by Hong Kong's privately held Reignwood Resources Holding Pte Ltd on Monday, throwing the cash-strapped Canadian oil and gas producer's financial future into uncertainty.

** L Catterton, the world's biggest consumer-focused buyout firm, is in talks to buy a controlling stake in Brazilian high-end supermarket chain St Marché, which took on too much debt following an aggressive expansion, three people with direct knowledge of the talks said.

** Italian motorway and airport caterer Autogrill says a company linked to Dutch hospitality chain Van der Valk has offered to buy its Autogrill Nederland BV, a subsidiary that manages 18 hotels with restaurants on Dutch highways. (Compiled by Akankshita Mukhopadhyay and Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru)