In the period 1917 to 1919, DuPont acquired 23 percent of the stock in the then- fledgling General Motors Corporation. By 1947, DuPont supplied 68 percent of GM’s automotive finish needs and 38 percent of its fabric needs. In 1955, General Motors ranked first in sales and second in assets among all U.S. industrial corporations, while ac-counting for approximately two-fifths of the nation’s annual automobile sales. In 1949, the Justice Department challenged Dupont’s 1917–19 acquisitions of GM stock.
a. Why did the government challenge DuPont’s acquisition?
b. May an acquisition be properly challenged 30 years after the fact, as in DuPont? Explain.
c. Given your general understanding of finishes and fabrics, how would you defend DuPont?
d. Decide. Explain.