EU regulators to warn EssilorLuxottica about Dutch deal, sources say

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – EU antitrust regulators will warn EssilorLuxottica that its 7.2-billion-euro ($8.1 billion) bid for Dutch opticians group GrandVision could harm competition, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The European Commission will send a statement of objections outlining its concerns in the coming days, a move which typically ratchets up the pressure on companies to offer concessions to allay such competition concerns.

The deal would give EssilorLuxottica control of more than 7,000 GrandVision outlets across the world where it already sells brands including Varilux lenses and Ray-Ban sunglasses.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, editing by Robin Emmott)