Latvian competition authorities have found potential evidence of collusion between major food retailers that could harm consumer interests and violate EU regulations on agreements.
The Latvian Competition Authority (KP) has indicated that two of the largest retail companies may not have acted independently, suggesting they coordinated their sales prices, which could negatively impact consumer interests and possibly constitute a violation of the European Union's prohibition on such agreements. This revelation raises concerns over market integrity and consumer protection in Latvia.
On February 26, KP conducted extensive procedural actions within food retail companies as part of an investigation into potential collusion. Horizontal agreements or cartels, defined as two or more competitors collaborating to restrict competition, represent serious breaches of competition law. Such infringements can lead to significant penalties, potentially reaching up to 10% of the global net turnover of the companies involved in the last financial year.
The objective of these procedural actions is to ascertain the presence of possible violations in the operations of the market participants under investigation. During this process, KP seeks to gather necessary information and evidence related to the suspected infringement. It is crucial to note that a violation can only be established at the conclusion of the investigative process when all evidence has been thoroughly compiled and assessed, emphasizing the complexity of enforcing competition laws effectively.
