Feds Resolve Antitrust Concerns over Beer Merger

Not because they realized it was stupid, sadly

The makers of Budweiser and Corona resolved antitrust concerns over their planned merger by divesting certain subsidiaries, federal officials told the court Friday.

The United States had sued Anheuser-Busch InBev and Grupo Modelo in January to block their planned merger and preserve competition in the nation's $80 billion annual beer market.

InBev, of Belgium, bought St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch for $52 billion in 2008. Anheuser-Busch InBev makes Busch, Budweiser, Michelob and other brands. Grupo Modelo's Corona meanwhile is best-selling imported beer in the United States. Together, they control 46 percent of the U.S. beer market.