Bonn, Germany - Russian steel group Mechel is on the verge of taking over a German steel merchant, HBL Holding, financial-market sources confirmed to Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa on Wednesday.
The Moscow newspaper Komersant had reported earlier that Mechel outbid the other potential buyers in an auction and had applied to Germany's competition authority, the Federal Cartel Office, in Bonn for merger permission.