19/12/2001 (Agence Europe) - According to the Reuters Agency, the European Commission is expected to give its stance, on Thursday, against a merger in the carbonless copy paper sector. The investigation opened in 1996 when the Commission carried out investigative searches on the premises of 17 companies including German Zanders Feinpapiere AG. A letter of objections was then sent in August 2000, as the European Executive had managed to gather sufficient evidence that there was indeed an agreement. The Commission did not make any comment on this decision. See EUROPE of 10 August 2000, p.2).