MOFCOM Releases Data on Merger Review Cases

On February 27, China’s Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”) announced that it cleared 207 merger review cases in the administrative year of 2013, an increase of 26% over the numbers in 2012. During the same time period, the number of merger filings increased by 8%, while the number of accepted cases increased by 12.8%, to 212. Four of the proposals were conditionally cleared last year:

• Glencore’s acquisition of Xstrata
• Marubeni’s acquisition of Gavilon
• MediaTek’s acquisition of MSTAR
• Bexter’s acquisition of Campbell

According to the director of MOFCOM’s Anti-Monopoly Bureau, Ming Shang, the number of merger and acquisition cases review by MOFCOM has increase rapidly since the inception of the Anti-Monopoly Law in 2008. By the end of 2013, MOFCOM has received 886 merger notification filings, with 797 accepted and 740 closed. Of all the closed cases, MOFCOM approved 717 cases (97%), imposed conditions on 22 cases and blocked only one.