FMC agreed to buy NxStage in August 2017 for $2 billion but the deal has been held up due to competition concerns and most recently the U.S. government shutdown.

"Very early this morning, we were notified the Federal Trade Commission has approved our NxStage deal," Chief Executive Rice Powell told reporters. "We would anticipate closing the NxStage deal over the next couple of days."

FMC's Chief Financial Officer Michael Brosnan also announced he planned to retire once a successor has been identified. FMC said it expects to name a new CFO by the end of the year.

(Reporting by Caroline Copley; editing by Thomas Seythal)