US move puts Brussels in a bind

A decision by a US court to allow the takeover of PeopleSoft by Oracle has put the European Commission in a difficult situation. Mario Monti, European Commissioner for Competition, suspended its investigation into the deal in April 2004 and Mr Monti is expected to issue his decision on the deal before the end of October 2004. Mr Monti must decide between following the US court's line or standing by the concerns expressed earlier by the Commission and prohibiting the takeover.