EU antitrust regulators set to block UPM-Sappi merger, sources say

​Finland's ​UPM-Kymmene and South ‌Africa-listed Sappi ​are set to face ‌an EU antitrust veto against their proposed €1.42 billion ($1.66 billion) paper ‌joint venture after the companies ‌declined to offer concessions to address competition concerns, people familiar ⁠with ​the ⁠matter said.

The companies also failed to ⁠convince regulators of the merits ​of their deal at a ⁠closed-door hearing earlier this ⁠week even ​after they argued about the sustainability and ⁠resilient impact of the deal, one ⁠of ⁠the people said.