June 10 (Reuters) -

U.S. grains merchant Bunge is close to getting a

ruling from Chinese regulators on its $8.2 billion purchase of

Glencore ( GLCNF )-backed Viterra with a verdict expected within

days, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday.

The merger, first announced in 2023, would create a

global crop trading and processing giant closer in scale to

chief rivals Archer-Daniels-Midland ( ADM ) and Cargill.

Regulatory approval in China remains among the last

remaining hurdles to the deal's closing.

Bunge and Viterra said in two separate, similarly worded

statements to Reuters that the companies were in the final stage

of regulatory approval and thanked Chinese officials for

"constructive dialogue throughout the review process."

China's commerce ministry did not immediately respond to

a Reuters request for comment.

The deal has secured most global approvals required for

the merger, including from the EU and Canada.

The completion deadline, originally scheduled for

mid-2024, has been

extended multiple times

, with the current date set for June 13.