MOFCOM Publishes Interim Regulations on Standards for Simple Mergers and Requests Public Comments

Under the 2008 Anti-Monopoly Law of China (AML), the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) is responsible for reviewing proposed concentrations that meet transaction-size thresholds. It has reportedly processed more than 450 transactions, issuing 16 conditional approvals and prohibiting one proposed concentration, applying factors such as market shares, concentration, entry, competitive effects, and national economic development, among others. On April 3, 2013, MOFCOM published draft “Interim Regulations on Standards Employed for Simple Mergers” seeking public comments. The draft identifies various scenarios that may or may not be classified as simple cases and four open-ended circumstances in which simple case status may be revoked. The standards for simple case classification include market share thresholds and several effects-based standards. This article analyzes the Interim Regulation, compares the current and proposed European Commission and US FTC and DOJ procedures for expedited review, and identifies some open questions not directly addressed by the current draft. The paper was published in the June 18, 2013 Competition Policy International, CPI Asia Column