Metcash is allowed to bid for Home Timber & Hardware

The Australian trading company Metcash is allowed to take part in the takeover procedure of the Home Timber & Hardware Group (HTH) and put in an offer for its parent company Woolworths. This has been decided by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. Metcash is already a majority shareholder of Mitre 10, an Australian hardware wholesaler and cooperative and also a competitor of HTH. In response to ACCC concerns, Metcash proposed an undertaking stipulating it would not restrict independent hardware stores from acquiring products from non-Metcash sources, nor would it favour its own hardware stores over nearby independent stores, according to an announcement by the commission.