November 8 -- The Ministry of Commerce approved today Yum! Brands' acquisition of hotpot restaurant chain Little Sheep (0968.HK), reports chinanews.com, citing a company filing.

Documents related to the acquisition will have to be sent to shareholders of Little Sheep by November 14.

Yum! Brands announced at end April that it plans to acquire Little Sheep and would purchase its shares at HK$6.5 per share, a premium of 30 percent over the closing price of HK$5 per share on April 21.

It was reported on June 27 that the Ministry of Commerce was reviewing the transaction to determine if the proposed merger would harm competition.

Shares of Little Sheep surged 15.19 percent to trade at HK$6.37 per share at 14:06 today.