MILAN, Sept 5 (Reuters) - New Zealand's Commerce Commission, the country's competition watchdog, has given the green light to a merger between Italian spectacles maker Luxottica LUX.MI and French lens manufacturer Essilor International
, it said on its website.
- The merger is "unlikely to substantially lessen competition in New Zealand," Commission Chairman Mark Berry said in a post on the website.
- "Competition is strong and we believe the merged entity will be sufficiently constrained by the presence of existing competitors with the ability to expand at all levels of the supply chain and in all relevant markets," the commission said.
- Luxottica, the world's biggest eyewear company, agreed in January a merger with Essilor, the biggest lens maker, to create an industry giant with a market value of about 47 billion euros and more than 15 billion euros in revenue.
- The deal needs to clear antitrust hurdles in several countries and if approved is expected to close around the end of the year.
