Emerging Trends In Merger Reviews Under China´s Anti-Monopoly Law

China's Anti-Monopoly Law ("AML") has now been in effect for approximately ten months.  During that time, over 50 pre-merger notifications have been filed with the Ministry of Commerce ("MOFCOM"), with unconditional clearances granted in approximately 39 cases, conditional approvals granted in two cases,¹ and the rejection of one proposed transaction.²  While China's pre-merger notification system is still relatively new, some trends are now starting to emerge: 

Filing Procedures And Timing of Review

Under the AML, the initial waiting period after parties file a pre-merger notification is 30 days.  This 30-day period, however, does not commence until the filing is complete.  In the three transactions for which MOFCOM has issued public decisions, it found that the parties' initial filings were not complete and required the parties to supplement them.  Consequently, the start of the waiting period was delayed by approximately one-to-two months.  Parties should be