The Italian Competition Authority starts an enquiry into an alleged cartel in the polyurethane foams market

Upon receipt of  a report, by a decision made on 3 April 2014 the Italian Competition Authority (ICA) has opened an investigation against five manufactures of polyurethane foams ( Case I776 Polyurethane Foams). The ICA feared that the parties may have cartelized the market for the production and sale of polyurethane foams in the shape of arrangements having as object market sharing and coordination of pricing policies. According to the report, the parties implemented the cartel by exchanging sensitive information or agreeing on the prices to apply to customers. The complainant also reported that the parties agreed to charge higher prices on customers that bought their requirements from firms other than their usual suppliers. In the ICA view, this practice may foreclose competitors of the parties, preventing customers  from shifting to them.

The Polyurethane Foams case seems to confirm the current proactive enforcement policy of the ICA that, under the new chairmanship, over the past few months opened several Article 101 and 102 TFEU investigations.

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