A South Korean court on Wednesday ruled in favour of the proposed merger of two Samsung Group subsidiaries, rejecting a US hedge fund's request for a court order to stop the move.

US hedge fund Elliott had filed a lawsuit asking for a court injunction to stop Cheil Industries acquiring Samsung C&T Corp through an all-stock deal, a move by Samsung's founding Lee family to boost control over the conglomerate ahead of a generational power transfer.

"The court rejected the request from Elliott", a court spokesman told AFP.