DS Smith has formally agreed to a merger with an American rival, putting pressure on Mondi, its London-listed rival suitor, to clarify its intentions.
The FTSE 100 packaging group, which supplies Amazon, Unilever and Cadbury, said it was recommending International Paper’s all-share offer, which was first mooted last month.
Mondi, which although listed in London has no packaging operations in Britain, approached DS Smith earlier in the year and indicated the all-share terms it might offer. Now it must decide whether to make a formal offer before the date — as yet unspecified — at which the shareholders of both International Paper and DS Smith will vote on their deal. Mondi has yet to make any formal response to DS Smith’s decision.
The situation has
