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EU: Vestager to block rail merger between Alstom and Siemens

By  |  January 30, 2019

According to a report from the Financial Times, Brussels is set to block the rail merger between Siemens and Alstom in a competition decision for Europe that Siemens’ chief executive warned would reflect the EU’s “absolutely naive” mindset.

Margrethe Vestager, the EU competition commissioner, is pressing ahead with an internal recommendation to veto the tie-up after last-ditch concessions from the German and French train manufacturers failed to address her concerns, according to several people with direct knowledge of the decision.

The decision deals a blow to a push by France and Germany to create “European champions” able to compete with state-backed foreign rivals, particularly from China. It will probably reignite a debate over the EU’s antitrust regime.

Full Content: Financial Times

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