US gives antitrust approval to Nikkei's purchase of Financial Times

[WASHINGTON] Japan's Nikkei media group won US antitrust approval for its US$1.3 billion purchase of the Financial Times from Britain's Pearson PLC, the Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday.

The transaction was on the list of deals that the FTC and Justice Department granted "early termination," essentially quick antitrust approval.

Nikkei's purchase of the Financial Times marks the culmination of decades of attempts to break into mainstream English-language media.

Nikkei, whose flagship newspaper enjoys a must-read reputation for financial news in Japan, previously had a years-long alliance with Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones, which ended in the last decade.

REUTERS