The Dutch government on Saturday said it is considering a law that would give the nation’s publicly listed companies a one-year period of “thinking time” during which they could freely reject any approach by a foreign buyer.
The announcement by Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs Henk Kamp comes amid a surge in nationalist and protectionist sentiment in the Netherlands.
It also comes as US paintmaker PPG Industries Inc seeks to buy Dutch based rival Akzo Nobel NV with a 26.3 billion euro (US$29.47 billion) offer that is widely backed by the company’s foreign shareholder base, but opposed by the company’s Dutch-controlled board.
Kamp has said a takeover of Akzo Nobel is not in the Dutch national interest.
The idea of a one-year cool-down period when a foreign company tries to buy a Dutch one has enjoyed backing from several prominent Dutch business leaders, notably former Shell chief executive officer Jeroen van der Veer.
There is also a backlash among several academics and thinkers who ridiculed the idea, and said it risks trashing the country’s reputation as a place to do business.
Kamp said the government is still investigating whether such a law is feasible and will consult with “experts and those involved.”
If the law is enacted it is unlikely it would effect the Akzo Nobel case.
A court is due today to hear complaints from Akzo shareholders who are seeking the removal of chairman Antony Burgmans.
PPG must decide by Thursday next week whether it would file formal bidding papers — along with proof it can finance a bid — to Dutch regulators.
It said Akzo’s reluctance to enter talks on a merger is hypocritical, given that the multinational company itself grew by foreign takeovers, notably of Sweden’s Nobel and Britain’s ICI.
Of the company’s 46,000 employees, only 5,000 are Dutch and of its shareholders, 93 percent are foreign.
Akzo said that PPG’s takeover would lead to job losses, that its own corporate values are more focused on sustainability, and that it has a better corporate plan to sell its chemicals division.
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Sales in the retail, and food and beverage sectors last month continued to rise, increasing 0.7 percent and 13.6 percent respectively from a year earlier, setting record highs for the month of March, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Sales in the wholesale sector also grew last month by 4.6 annually, mainly due to the business opportunities for emerging applications related to artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing technologies, the ministry said in a report. The ministry forecast that retail, and food and beverage sales this month would retain their growth momentum as the former would benefit from Tomb Sweeping Day