“Revision of the Business Combination Guidelines”: Competition Law Team

Revision of the Business Combination Guidelines

Introduction

On 17 July 2026, the Japan Fair Trade Commission (“JFTC”) published a draft revision of the Guidelines to Application of the Antimonopoly Act Concerning Review of Business Combination (the “Business Combination Guidelines”). The background to this revision includes the growing importance of promoting innovation and strengthening international competitiveness amid changes in the economic environment surrounding Japan, such as advances in digital technology, the issue of climate change and market shrink resulting from population decline. It also includes new societal challenges such as security of supply and environmental performance, the accumulation of recent business combination review cases, and reviews of merger guidelines in the United States, the EU, the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions.

This newsletter provides an overview of the key points of the proposed revision and considers the impact that the revision may have on future reviews of business combinations and relevant practice.

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[Contents]

Introduction

Consideration of Stability of Supply, Environmental Performance, Innovation and Other Factors

Consideration of Long-Term Market Conditions in Competitive Assessment

Additional Text Reflecting Recent Review Cases and Overseas Developments

Future Schedule for the Revision Process

Conclusion

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Japanese:「物流特殊指定の改正」：競争法チーム 

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