LONDON (AFP) — The takeover of British media giant Reuters by Canadian rival Thomson Corp will conclude in the second quarter of 2008, the pair said in a statement on Monday.
The deal is aimed at creating the biggest provider of financial data to trading rooms, leapfrogging current market leader and US rival Bloomberg.
Thomson Corporation agreed last year to buy Reuters for 8.7 billion pounds (12.8 billion euros, 17.2 billion dollars).
"Thomson and Reuters expect the transaction to close early in the second quarter of 2008," the pair said Monday.
"While the regulatory review process continues, integration planning efforts associated with the acquisition are proceeding on course."
Thomson and Reuters have also agreed that the US Department of Justice will publish its regulatory review of the deal at the same time as the European Commission, instead of tomorrow as scheduled.
The European Commission has until March 10, 2008, to decide on the takeover, which was announced in May 2007.
Along with the privately-held US group Bloomberg, Thomson and Reuters currently dominate the market for providing financial data to banks, investment funds and other financial services firms.
The Commission opened an in-depth investigation into the deal last October over "serious" concerns the deal could stifle competition.
Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
