When China’s antimono-poly law went into effect three years ago, there were fears that Beijing would use it as formal cover for protectionism.

　　三年前當(dāng)中國(guó)《反壟斷法》生效時(shí)，有人擔(dān)心，北京方面將把這部法律當(dāng)作保護(hù)主義的正式幌子。

　　Although the worst of those concerns have not materialised, there is a growing realisation that the law has become a hurdle for mergers and acquisitions, not just in China but globally.

　　盡管最可怕的憂慮沒有成為現(xiàn)實(shí)，但各方日趨意識(shí)到，該法已變成并購(gòu)活動(dòng)的一道障礙，其影響力不僅限于中國(guó)，而是擴(kuò)展到了全球?qū)用妗?

　　When Beijing approved a merger of Russian potash producers UralKali and Silvinit in June, it demanded the new company continue to meet the demands of Chinese customers and adhere to established pricing conventions. China threatened to impose penalties should it fail to do so. It was the seventh time the Chinese commerce ministry had imposed conditions on global mergers that had taken place beyond China’s borders. Antitrust lawyers say the conditions have a common thread, which is that Beijing, more than other jurisdictions, wants to protect domestic companies from the potential effects of global mergers.

　　今年6月，在批準(zhǔn)兩家俄羅斯鉀肥生產(chǎn)商——烏拉爾鉀肥(UralKali)和Silvinit——之間的合并時(shí)，北京方面要求合并后的新公司繼續(xù)滿足中國(guó)客戶的需求，并遵守既定的定價(jià)慣例。中方威脅稱，若該公司不能照辦，就可能對(duì)其進(jìn)行處罰。這是中國(guó)商務(wù)部第七次對(duì)發(fā)生在中國(guó)境外的全球并購(gòu)交易施加條件。反壟斷律師們表示，這些條件有一條共同的主線，即中國(guó)比其它法律管轄區(qū)更希望保護(hù)本土企業(yè)不受全球合并的潛在影響。

　　For foreign companies, that means the onus is on them to get to grips to with China’s antitrust regime and prepare filings that directly address Beijing’s concerns as early as possible.

　　對(duì)外國(guó)企業(yè)來(lái)說(shuō)，這意味著它們有責(zé)任熟悉中國(guó)的反壟斷制度，并及早提交直接應(yīng)對(duì)中方關(guān)切的申報(bào)材料。

　　But Peter Wang, a partner at Jones Day in Shanghai, said many were “still used to treating China as an afterthought” when submitting mergers for antitrust reviews. “The Chinese regulators believe that they should be taken seriously, and it probably is a good idea for us to do that,” Mr Wang added.

　　但是，眾達(dá)律師事務(wù)所(Jones Day)在上海的合伙人王智平(Peter Wang)表示，許多公司在提交合并交易的反壟斷評(píng)審時(shí)，“仍習(xí)慣于不把中國(guó)當(dāng)一回事”。“中國(guó)監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)認(rèn)為他們應(yīng)當(dāng)?shù)玫秸J(rèn)真對(duì)待，在這方面照辦恐怕是個(gè)好主意，”王智平補(bǔ)充說(shuō)。

　　In a sign that Chinese regulators are being taken more seriously, US and Chinese antitrust agencies last week signed a memorandum of understanding to help enhance their relationship. “What we’ve seen so far from the Chinese antitrust agencies is very promising,” Jon Leibowitz, chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, one of two US antitrust regulators, told the Financial Times.

　　 中國(guó)監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)正在得到更認(rèn)真對(duì)待的一個(gè)跡象是，美國(guó)和中國(guó)的反壟斷機(jī)構(gòu)上周簽署了一份諒解備忘錄，以求加強(qiáng)雙方之間的關(guān)系。“迄今我們從中國(guó)反壟斷機(jī)構(gòu)看到的情況很有希望，”美國(guó)兩家反壟斷監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)之一聯(lián)邦貿(mào)易委員會(huì)(FTC)主席喬恩?萊博維茨(Jon Leibowitz)對(duì)英國(guó)《金融時(shí)報(bào)》表示。

　　On the face of it, Chinese regulators have had a remarkably light touch. Of the roughly 250 mergers that they have reviewed, only one has been rejected: Coca-Cola’s bid for Hui-yuan, a juicemaker.

　　表面看來(lái)，中國(guó)的監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)迄今相當(dāng)寬松。在它們審議的約250宗合并交易中，只有一宗被否決：可口可樂(Coca-Cola)對(duì)果汁生產(chǎn)商匯源(Hui-yuan)的并購(gòu)報(bào)價(jià)。

　　More than 95 percent of all deals have been approved without any conditions. But the details are more unsettling. The Chinese commerce ministry has yet to apply conditions on any purely domestic mergers, let alone reject them. In many cases, lawyers say that large Chinese state-owned companies still do not bother to notify regulators of their mergers, and the ministry turns a blind eye.

　　95%以上的交易獲得批準(zhǔn)，且不附帶任何條件。但具體細(xì)節(jié)更加令人不安。中國(guó)商務(wù)部從未對(duì)任何純粹國(guó)內(nèi)的合并交易施加條件，更不用說(shuō)否決此類交易了。律師們表示，在許多情況下，中國(guó)的大型國(guó)企仍不會(huì)費(fèi)心向監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)申報(bào)自己的合并計(jì)劃，而商務(wù)部對(duì)此也就睜一只眼閉一只眼。

　　Even when foreign mergers are granted unconditional approvals, the review process is increasingly drawn out. 

　　 即使國(guó)外的合并交易得到無(wú)條件批準(zhǔn)，審議過(guò)程也變得越來(lái)越漫長(zhǎng)。

　　“Sometimes you even hear about drop-dead dates coming close or financing becoming precarious because of the extended delay,” Mr Wang said.

　　“有時(shí)候，你甚至?xí)犝f(shuō)長(zhǎng)時(shí)間拖延致使終止日臨近或融資出現(xiàn)問(wèn)題的情況，”王智平表示。

　　The remedies that Beijing imposes have also raised eyebrows. While divestitures required for approvals of the Mitsubishi Rayon-Lucite chemicals merger and the Pfizer-Wyeth pharmaceuticals deal were reasonable in antitrust terms, they have helped shift valuable businesses into the hands of Chinese companies.

　　北京方面強(qiáng)加的補(bǔ)救措施也令人皺眉。在日本三菱麗陽(yáng)(Mitsubishi Rayon)并購(gòu)英國(guó)璐彩特國(guó)際(Lucite International)的化工業(yè)交易以及輝瑞(Pfizer)并購(gòu)惠氏(Wyeth)的醫(yī)藥業(yè)交易中，中國(guó)都提出了剝離資產(chǎn)的要求。盡管此類要求在反壟斷范疇是合理的，但它們都幫助推動(dòng)有價(jià)值的企業(yè)落入中國(guó)公司之手。