Federal Agencies Finalize Antitrust Guidelines: The Kiplinger Letter
What new antitrust guidelines by the Justice Department and FTC mean for mergers and acquisitions.
![Business people shaking hands in conference room](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSU4y9yHReKVQE3ZUaB3C8-415-80.jpg)
To help you understand what impact the Justice Department and the FTC's new antitrust guidelines will have on mergers and acquisitions and what we expect to happen in the future, our highly experienced Kiplinger Letter team will keep you abreast of the latest developments and forecasts (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Letter or subscribe). You'll get all the latest news first by subscribing, but we will publish many (but not all) of the forecasts a few days afterward online. Here’s the latest…
Two critical federal agencies have finalized new antitrust guidelines that are expected to have a chilling effect on mergers and acquisitions or, at the very least, expand the transactions subject to regulatory enforcement.
The update from the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the first since 2010. Among the changes are a lower market share for mergers to carry a presumption of harm and trigger action by Uncle Sam and greater scrutiny of vertical mergers — a focus on transactions that would extend or entrench a single firm’s dominance.
The agencies notably softened certain provisions from previous drafts, preserving firms’ ability to tout merger benefits and rebut allegations of harm. But the final guidelines maintain their most ambitious changes. Officials hope to build on recent antitrust victories, including a challenge to DNA sequencing giant Illumina’s acquisition of cancer test developer GRAIL— accelerating patient access to a life-saving multi-cancer early-detection test.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/hwgJ7osrMtUWhk5koeVme7-200-80.png](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/hwgJ7osrMtUWhk5koeVme7-320-80.png)
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Also, a recent analysis suggests that the Biden administration is largely succeeding with traditional antitrust cases but has struggled with more ambitious lawsuits.
This forecast first appeared in The Kiplinger Letter, which has been running since 1923 and is a collection of concise weekly forecasts on business and economic trends, as well as what to expect from Washington, to help you understand what’s coming up to make the most of your investments and your money. Subscribe to The Kiplinger Letter.
Related Content
Get Kiplinger Today newsletter — free
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.
-
Understanding Your Financial Belief System
If we can disconnect from our past beliefs and assess our current situation with a certain level of objectivity, we can make more appropriate decisions.
By Deborah W. Ellis Published
-
Why This Economist Thinks the Fed Is Already Late to Cut Rates
Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi talks to Kiplinger about what he thinks the Federal Reserve is getting wrong on inflation.
By Anne Kates Smith Published
-
Car Prices Are Finally Coming Down
The Kiplinger Letter For the first time in years, it may be possible to snag a good deal on a new car.
By David Payne Published
-
Rising Cyber Threat of AI: The Kiplinger Letter
The Kiplinger Letter Security experts warn that generative AI brings new risks with no clear defenses. With AI's rapid adoption, businesses are vulnerable.
By John Miley Published
-
Congress Spends Big on Closing the Digital Divide
The Kiplinger Letter A massive spending program is designed to bring high-speed internet to rural and remote locations.
By John Miley Published
-
Kiplinger Special: The Long-Term Future of the U.S. Economy
The Kiplinger Letter Kiplinger's report into what it will take the U.S. to maintain a healthy economic growth rate.
By David Payne Published
-
The Fight Against Cancer Enters a New Phase
The Kiplinger Letter Breakthrough treatments hold promise for patients and investors.
By Matthew Housiaux Published
-
After Decades of Promise, the Virtual Reality Era Has Finally Arrived
The Kiplinger Letter VR is a paradigm shift for consumer technology. The tech has a long road ahead, but amazing hardware already puts the huge potential on full display.
By John Miley Published
-
AI to Power the Next Generation of Robots
The Kiplinger Letter There's increasing buzz that the tech behind ChatGPT will make future industrial and humanoid robots far more capable.
By John Miley Published
-
The Robots Are Coming... But Not For a While
The Kiplinger Letter There’s excitement in the tech sector over the potential of humanoid robots, but widespread adoption is likely to be years away.
By John Miley Published