The Acquisitions of the Chinese State-Owned Enterprises Under the EU Merger Control Regime: Time for Reflection?

Abstract

The acquisitions notified by the Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) under EU merger control regime have raised a number of questions as to the suitability of the current merger control rules and standards applied by the EU Commission for the ex ante assessment of the likely impact of such transactions on competition in the EU Internal Market. The present paper provides an overview of the EU Commission’s practice to date with special focus on the concepts of “single economic unit”, “decisive influence” and “control” that have been applied by the EU Commission in the cases involving Chinese SOEs.

Keywords: competition law, merger control, China, European Commission, SASAC, state-owned enterprise, belt and road initiative, single economic unit, economic concentration, state control, state ownership, foreign investment

JEL Classification: K21, L4, K23, L44, P2, P3, O53