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EU: Commission to rule on US$80b Linde-Praxair merger

 |  August 19, 2018

According to a report by the Financial Times the EU will rule on the $80bn tie-up between Linde, the German chemicals group, and its US rival Praxair on Monday, an important milestone in a deal that would create the world’s largest industrial gas supplier.

Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition commissioner, is expected to clear the merger after the companies provisionally agreed to sell €5bn of Praxair’s European assets to Japanese rival Taiyo Nippon Sanso, to address concerns that the deal would raise prices and reduce choice for consumers.

The main remaining hurdle is the US Federal Trade Commission. In July, the companies had announced they would sell $3bn of Linde’s US assets to German rival Messer and private equity group CVC to secure FTC approval.

Full Content: Financial Times

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