Japan to Rule on BHP Billiton's Bid for Rio Tinto, Nikkei Says

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Japan's Fair Trade Commission will rule whether the takeover of Rio Tinto Ltd. by BHP Billiton Ltd., the world's largest mining company, violates antitrust laws, Nikkei English News reported, without saying where it got the information. The two Anglo-Australian firms don't have assets in Japan, so if the commission declares the acquisition illegal, its decision will be difficult to enforce, Nikkei reported. Japanese steelmakers import about 60 percent of their iron ore from BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, the news service said. The European Union's competition commission will issue a provisional judgment on the merger before its final decision on Jan. 15, Nikkei said.