Business
16:15, 14-Aug-2017
Brussels considers tighter vetting on foreign takeovers
["europe"]
Share
Copied
The European Commission will call for greater scrutiny of foreign takeovers of European enterprises in strategic sectors, the Financial Times reported on Monday citing anonymous sources involved in talks.
President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, will announce measures in a keynote speech in September to address screening foreign takeovers in strategic sectors, the report said.
The commission is also considering imposing EU-level investment vetting on takeovers of companies backed by EU funding, according to the report.
It is not the first time for the commission will discuss vetting.
At the EU summit held in Brussels in late June, free-trade advocates including eastern and southern European economies disagreed with France, Germany and Italy on a proposal of a formal European mechanism to restrict foreign takeovers in some industries.
But the two sides agreed that the commission could “analyze investment from third countries in strategic sectors, while fully respecting Members States' competences,” according to the conclusion statement of the summit released on June 23.