A Namibian court has quashed a competition watchdog ruling that placed local conditions on Wal-Mart's (WMT.N) planned takeover of South African retailer Massmart (MSMJ.J), a newspaper said on Friday. Massmart operations in Namibia include retailers such as Game and Builders Warehouse. The country's regulator had said the U.S. retail giant's takeover should be subject to conditions relating to local ownership and prevention of job losses. Wal-Mart contested the decision in the Namibian High Court, which decribed the conditions as "arbitrary and irritional and impermissibly vague", and said they ran contrary to the Foreign Investment Act, the Namibian daily reported. The judgment, which was awarded to Wal-Mart with costs, means the $2.3 billion acquisition of Massmart is now subject only to a decision by South African competition authorities. A hearing is scheduled for May 9. Regulators in other African countries where Massmart operates have already gave the deal the green light. The merger will affect operations in 14 countries.
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (Walmart) operates retail stores. Shares of WMT remained unchanged at $54.69. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $47.77 and as high as $57.90. On average, 11977000 shares of WMT exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 0.
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