Antitrust Authority director Ronit Kan has approved the Buffett- Iscar deal, in which Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A; BRK: B) acquired 80% of Iscar. Kan announced her decision after consultations with the exemptions and mergers commission.
The deal was transacted through Buffet’s public company Berkshire Hathaway, and International Metalworking, a wholly owned subsidiary of Iscar.
Kan listed in her decision the companies in which Buffett has invested that operate in Israel: General Re, which provides reinsurance products; Berkshire Hathaway Group, which provides annuity policies; Scott Fetzer Companies, which owns companies that manufactures accessories for vacuum cleaners and compressors; NetJets, a provider of private aviation solutions for the business sector; Shaw Industries which produces and sells carpet, rugs, ceramic, hardwood, and laminate flooring; and Chore-Time Brock, which manufactures systems for the poultry, hog, egg production, and grain industries.
International Metalworking designs ,manufactures and markets both directly and through its subsidiaries, a wide range of metal panels and tools.
Kan said the merger was a conglomerate merger between a company manufacturing metal paneling and a company engaged in other lines of business. In light of this, there were no reservations about the deal from the competitive aspect.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on June 15, 2006
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