Competition watchdogs finally approve acquisition
The US Federal Trade Commission and the Canadian Competition Bureau have approved Sherwin-Williams acquisition of Valspar.
The companies announced the US $11.3bn deal in March of last year, making it the largest acquisition in the 151-year history of Sherwin-Williams.
There were concerns that a major producer of paint will disappear into another while the number of outstanding independent manufacturers will shrink, but the two competition watchdogs finally gave the deal the green light.
Dozens of manufacturing plants will change hands as part of the deal, which will create a ‘mammoth global paint company with combined estimated revenues of $15.6bn, adjusted earnings of $2.8bn, and about 58,000 employees.’
The deal is expected to close tomorrow, 1 June.
