UPS Drops $7B for TNT Express: Hot Trends

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Popular searches on the Internet include UPS (UPS) after the delivery company dropped its $7 billion bid for TNT Express.

UPS was forced to forgo its planned acquisition of TNT after European Commission officials told the companies the would veto the deal because they believed it would stifle competition. UPS said it was not prepared to modify the terms of the deal any further at the time.

The deal would have been the biggest in UPS' history.

UPS said it would pay TNT €200 million as a termination fee once the commission confirms it will block the deal. The EU is expected to do so early next month.

UPS had revised proposed concessions to the agreement twice. The companies had been prepared to provide rivals with access to the combined network and sell some assets, but the EU had reportedly been looking for a competitor similar in size to TNT to fill its position.

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Swatch is trending as the company is set to buy the luxury jewelry business of Harry Winston for about $1 billion.

Swatch will pay $750 million in cash and assume up to $250 million in debt. The acquisition will allow Swatch, the biggest watchmaker by sales, to enter into the high-end jewelry market.

The acquisition includes the Harry Winston production company and about 500 employees around the world. The deal does not include the mining activities of Harry Winston Diamond Corp. The two companies do plan to explore opportunities for a joint diamond polishing venture.

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Billabong is another popular search. The Australian surfing apparel company said it has received a competing takeover bid of 526.8 million Australian dollars ($555.5 million) from a U.S. group including clothing company VF Corp. (VFC).

The bid from VF Corp. matches a previous offer Billabong received in December from a group including board member Paul Naude, Sycamore Partners Management and Bank of America (BAC) Merrill Lynch.

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