China announces new merger rules...

Details of new merger rules have been unveiled by the Chinese authorities, it is reported.

The People's Daily has stated that if the global revenue of the companies involved exceeds 10 billion yuan ($1.46 billion), or 2 billion yuan in China, then the merger must be cleared by the Ministry of Commerce, according to the Guardian.

It says even then a review would not be necessary unless two or more of the firms each had more than 400 million yuan of revenue in China during the previous accounting year.

However, it adds that when a proposed business combination does not reach the threshold, the government will still assess whether the new company's resulting market share might lead to a monopoly.

Meanwhile, the People's Daily has reported that the country's new competition law is to be applied equally, regardless of the size or geography of businesses.

Professor Shi Jianzhong from China University's Political Science and Law department commented: "The Chinese market is so highly international now that it is neither realistic nor possible to only target the law at foreign multinationals while relaxing it for domestic companies."