EU regulators halt review of Qualcomm-NXP deal for second time

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators have halted for a second time their review of U.S. smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm's $38-billion bid for NXP Semiconductors after the companies failed to provide key details of the deal.

The European Commission paused its investigation on Aug. 17, a filing on its website showed. It had previously set a Dec. 6 deadline for its decision.

"Once the missing information is supplied by the parties, the clock is re-started and the deadline for the Commission’s decision is then adjusted accordingly," EU competition regulators said in an email.

The Commission is investigating concerns that the deal may raise prices and reduce innovation in the semiconductor industry.

Qualcomm, which supplies chips to Android smartphone makers and Apple faces the risk of regulators vetoing the deal if it is unable to address those concerns with concessions.

It is set to become the leading supplier to the fast growing automotive chip market following the deal, the largest ever in the semiconductor industry.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by Jason Neely)

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