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Graco to divest liquid finishing businesses for ITW acquisition

By  |  May 31, 2012

The Federal Trade Commission has voted to accept Graco’s consent agreement concerning its acquisition of several Illinois Tool Works (ITW) businesses. The FTC was concerned that the $650 million acquisition would lead to substantial anti-competitive effects in the liquid finishing equipment market: Graco and ITW are close competitors, and the deal may have reduced or eliminated distributor discounts and incentives to innovate. The combined entity would have a dominant share of North American sales of industrial liquid finishing equipment. Moreover, smaller rivals would have difficulty competing with Graco and ITW’s distribution and brand acceptance.

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    The settlement calls for Graco divesting its liquid finishing business assets. A March 2012 order to hold the assets separate from Graco’s other businesses remains in effect.

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    Full content: FTC Press Release

     

    Related content: Illinois Tool Works v. Independent Ink (Josh Wright, George Mason University School of Law)

     

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