P&G clears hurdle to $4B acquisition

Procter & Gamble Co. yesterday cleared an important hurdle toward closing on a $4 billion acquisition.

The European Commission approved P&G's bid to buy the consumer health care brands of Merck KGaA of Germany.

“The commission concluded that the proposed transaction would raise no competition concerns because the activities of the companies are generally complementary,” officials with the European agency said. “The transaction gives rise to a limited number of horizontal overlaps for which the commission found, following its market investigation, that sufficient competition will remain after the transaction.”

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