Nov. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Bunge Ltd. will terminate its agreement to purchase Corn Products International Inc. after the corn processor withdrew support for the all-stock deal as the offer value shrank by almost two-thirds to about $1.68 billion.

Under the agreement, Corn Products must reimburse as much as $10 million of the costs and expenses that Bunge incurred in connection with the proposed acquisition, White Plains, New York- based Bunge said today in a statement.

Bunge, the world's biggest oilseed processor, offered $4.2 billion of stock for Corn Products in June to boost sales of corn-based sweeteners at a time of record grain prices. Bunge shares have since plunged 60 percent, reducing the value of the offer, as economic growth slowed and crop prices tumbled.

``With the canceling of the Bunge merger, we continue to focus on the relatively solid fundamentals of the company and its stable and defensive nature,'' Heather Jones, an analyst at BB&T Capital Markets, said in a note about Corn Products.

Westchester, Illinois-based Corn Products said on Nov. 5 it intended to withdraw its support for the takeover, which was announced on June 23.

``We remain disappointed with the decision of the Corn Products Board to withdraw its recommendation of the merger,'' Bunge Chief Executive Officer Alberto Weisser said today in the statement. ``Moving forward, Bunge will continue to pursue its strategy of investing for growth in its core businesses and in complementary value chains.''

Bunge was unchanged at $44.22 at 4:15 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading after rising as much as 7.4 percent earlier. Corn Products fell 32 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $24.32 and has slumped 52 percent since June 23.

To contact the reporter on this story: Choy Leng Yeong in Seattle at clyeong@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 10, 2008 16:59 EST