As the biggest emerging economy and a major economic power in the world, China is a late but a significant entrant into the competition law club, with the implementation of a new Anti-Monopoly Law (AML) on 1st August, 2008. The article focuses on the merger enforcement by examining the implementing regulations and orders related to merger control which were issued after the enactment of the AML. In light of the substantive standards and the procedural requirements of merger control, the article makes a comparison between Chinese regime and the U.S. and EU's standards. Some empirical findings on the AML and its merger enforcement has largely illustrated that China is making its efforts to realize a soft convergence with international norms, meanwhile, the gradual approach of convergence gives China the flexibility to stop, to adjust and to make an exception whenever necessary.
Anti-monopoly Law; Antitrust; China; Merger control; comparative Law