Ford's sale of Volvo to Geely gets European OK

ERJ staff report (AN)

Brussels (Reuters) -- European Union competition regulators approved on Tuesday Ford Motor Co.'s sale of its Volvo premium car unit to Chinese carmaker Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. and state-owned investment group Daqing.

Following an investigation, the European Commission concluded that the proposed deal would not significantly impede competition in Europe, the EU executive body said in a statement.

Geely's $1.8 billion takeover of Sweden-based Volvo was agreed in March and represents China's biggest overseas auto purchase to date.

The deal is seen as a further milestone in China's emergence as an auto powerhouse, after the country overtook the United States as the world's biggest car market last year.

The Volvo-Geely deal is expected to be finalised sometime during the third quarter, Ford of Europe CEO John Fleming told the Automotive News Europe Congress late last month.

Douglas A. Bolduc contributed to this report

From Automotive News (A Crain publication)