The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Monday it was suing to block Coach parent Tapestry’s $8.5 billion deal to buy Michael Kors owner Capri
U.S. antitrust enforcers had also come out with new merger guidelines in December, in a bid to encourage fair, open and competitive markets. Tapestry had offered to buy Capri in August, hoping to create a U.S. fashion behemoth that could effectively battle bigger European rivals such as Louis Vuitton parent LVMH and potentially get more share in the global luxury market.“Capri Holdings strongly disagrees with the FTC’s decision,” the company said in a statement. “The market realities, which the government’s challenge ignores, overwhelmingly demonstrate that this transaction will not limit, reduce, or constrain competition.