Publication for Public Comment of Draft Regulations on Buyer Power and Price Discrimination in Terms of the Competition Act |
| The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition has published draft regulations for public comment in terms of section 78 of the Competition Act (Act No 89 of 1998) dealing with buyer power (section 8(4)) and price discrimination (section 9).
The publication of the draft regulations for public comment follows the signing of the Competition Amendment Act, 2018 in February this year by President Ramaphosa, and the promulgation of certain sections of the Amendment Act in July this year by the Minister of Trade & Industry, Mr Ebrahim Patel. The provisions dealing with buyer power and price discrimination are important amendments to the Competition Act, and have been proposed to provide small businesses with protection against abusive practices by either dominant suppliers (in the case of price discrimination) or customers (in the case of buyer power). During his Budget Vote speech in July this year, Mr Patel indicated that the provisions will “provide small businesses with remedies against price discrimination by dominant firms; or when dominant buyers abuse their power by imposing unfair prices and other trading conditions.” The Competition Commission is expected to publish their draft guidelines on buyer power and price discrimination in terms of section 79 of the Competition Act next week. The guidelines are expected to complement the regulations by providing guidance on how the Commission will investigate potential cases. Any comments from the public on the draft regulations should be submitted by email to competitionregulations@economic.gov.za by no later than 7 November 2019. Click on the link to access link the gazette : http://www.thedtic.gov.za/gazzettes/42760.pdf Enquiries: |
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