US: Electrolux to retract CEO’s antitrust testimony to keep GE appliance deal

Electrolux AB is seeking to retract notable testimony by its chief executive in an antitrust trial where it is fighting to save its planned purchase of General Electric appliance business, a potential setback for the company’s legal defense.

A lawyers for Electrolux on Friday told a US federal judge that Chief Executive Keith McLoughlin gave incorrect details on product-offering developments by competitors during testimony Thursday as he sought to rebut antitrust claims from the Justice Department. The government has sued to block the $3.3 billion deal on allegations that it will lead to higher prices for cooking appliances.

McLoughlin had told US District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan that competitive pressures from Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics were increasing continuously, including since the government filed its lawsuit in July to challenge the Electrolux-GE deal. In the last few months, Samsung and LG had started selling cooking ranges for lower price points such as $399 and $499, moving beyond its higher-end appliances to target value consumers, McLoughlin said.

It turns out that statement wasn’t true.

“It was a misstatement,” Electrolux lawyer John Majoras told the judge Friday.

Full content: The Wall Street Journal

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