BEIJING -- Yum! Brands' proposed bid for Chinese hot pot restaurant chain Little Sheep Group will be subject to China's anti-monopoly inspection process, Ministry of Commerce spokesman Yao Jian said Tuesday.
However, the ministry has not yet received an application for the anti-monopoly review from Yum, owner of the popular Kentucky Fried Chicken fast food chain, Yao said at a press conference.
Yum offered to buy a 93-percent stake in the Inner Mongolia-based restaurant operator at 6.5 Hong Kong dollars per share in cash, Little Sheep said in an earlier statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
China's anti-monopoly laws require firms to get Chinese government approval for mergers if their combined global revenues exceed 10 billion yuan ($1.54 billion) and each reports more than 400 million yuan in sales revenues in China for the previous fiscal year.
Authorities must also review mergers if the firms' revenues in China exceed 2 billion yuan for the previous fiscal year and each reports more than 400 million yuan in sales revenues.
According to Yao, Yum's sales revenues in China hit 33.6 billion yuan in 2010, while Little Sheep pulled in nearly 2 billion yuan in sales revenues in 2010.
Yao reiterated that China will continue to open up its domestic market and treat all foreign companies fairly.
He urged companies to follow China's laws and regulations in terms of mergers and acquisitions, while promising that China will also review new cases according to its laws and regulations.
