Govt may limit company mergers

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33541, 23 May 1974, Page 14

Govt may limit company mergers

Some recent mergers which had been designed to give monopolistic control would be the subject of scrutiny when the Consumers’ Bill was passed by Parliament, the Minister of Trade and industry (Mr Freer) said last evening.

There was growing con-' cern about the expansion of breweries into hotels, many bought at high prices, Mr Freer said. The Government was also concerned about a carpet manufacturer which was obtaining control of many furniture shops.

Mr Freer, who was I officially opening a threeday residential seminar of the cost and management accounting division of the (Society of Accountants at Ham, said that mergers and (take-overs were not proper when their aim was to [strengthen a firm’s grip on the market and lead to the) elimination of competition. [ The Government did not favour manufacturers’ gaining control of the wholesale [and retail outlets for their (products, he said. • The theme of the seminar, (which is attended by about 150 accountants from all

(over New Zealand, is "better (management accounting for better productivity,” and Mr Freer devoted most of his address to productivity. New Zealand’s productivity performance had been [“disturbingly poor” in recent I years, Mr Freer said. It had been much lower than that for almost any other developed country in the world