The Italian Competition Authority to investigate two price-fixing agreements in the steel industry

Recently, in the Case I472 the Italian Competition Authority has opened an Article 101 TFEU investigation targeting two price-fixing agreements allegedly put in practice by 6 firms active in the steel industry. The agreements had as object two steel products used in the building sector, rebar and welded network.
The ICA observed that representatives from the parties are members of the Price Committee of the Chamber of Commerce of Brescia. Every 15 days the Committee holds meeting during which the selling prices for the steel products were reported. Such prices had two components: a basic and a so-called extra component depending on the size of the product. Then, the prices were quoted on a table published by the Committee.

On the basis of the evidence collected at the premises of the parties and of trade associations, the ICA found out a full correspondence between the ‘extra’ component of the prices charged by the parties and those reported in the Committee’s lists for the products of same size. Therefore, the ICA took the view that such circumstance may indicate that the parties may have coordinated their pricing and commercial policies with regard to rebars and welded networks and opened an investigation into the alleged collusion.       

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