Washington, Jan 30 (AP) The Justice Department sued to block Hewlett Packard Enterprise's USD 14 billion acquisition of rival Juniper Networks on Thursday, the first attempt to stop a merger by a brand new Trump administration that most expect will take a softer approach to mergers.

The Justice complaint alleges that Hewlett Packer Enterprise, under increased competitive pressure from the fast-rising Juniper, was forced to discount products and services and invest more in its own innovation, eventually leading the company to simply buy its rival.

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The lawsuit said that the combination of businesses would eliminate competition, raise prices and reduce innovation.

The Justice Department's intervention — the first of the new administration and just 10 days after Donald Trump's inauguration — comes as somewhat of a surprise.

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Most experts predicted a second Trump administration to ease up on antitrust enforcement and be more receptive to mergers and deal-making after years of hypervigilance under former President Joe Biden's watch.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced one year ago that it was buying Juniper Networks for USD 40 a share in a deal expected to double HPE's networking business.

The Justice Department said that Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Juniper are the US's second- and third-largest providers of wireless local area network (WLAN) products and services for businesses. (AP)

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