The Conglomerate Merger Tangle

Conglomerates such as L.T.V., I.T.T., Gulf and Western, and Litton Industries have become widely known during the sixties. Whatever else may have happened during this decade, a fundamental change has occurred in the nature of mergers. In a base period of 1948 to 1951, 38.1 percent of all mergers were conglomerate whereas in 1968, 91 percent of all mergers were conglomerate. What caused this change and what are the effects of this change for antitrust have been the subjects of much concern and analysis.