UPS Appeals EU Rejection of $6.8B TNT Takeover Bid

UPS (NYSE:UPS) said Monday that it appealed the European Commission’s rejection of its close to $7 billion bid for Dutch rival TNT Express, calling the January decision “factually and legally erroneous.”

After offering several concessions throughout 2012, the world’s biggest package-delivery company pulled its offer for TNT in January as European antitrust regulators blocked the deal. It paid TNT at the time a 200 million-euro termination.

A UPS spokeswoman told FOX Business that the company is appealing the EC decision as it looks to ensure “a more accurate assessment of the EU competitive landscape” so that no precedent established by the Commission limits international growth opportunities.

If successful, the decision would be annulled, which essentially means the prior decision could not be used as a basis for future decisions by the European regulatory body.

UPS offered to buy TNT of 9.50 euros a share in March 2012 after sweetening an earlier bid from 9 euros, which was initially rejected by TNT.

It has long said that the deal, which would have marked the largest in UPS’s history, would have been transformative for the logistics industry, bringing needed benefits while supporting growth in Europe.

Shares of UPS barely reacted in recent trade, edging nine cents higher to $83.63.