National Development and Reform Commission, Suppression of Acts of Price Monopoly Tentative Provisions

Promulgated: June 18 2003
Effective: January 1 2003
Interpreting authority: National Development and Reform Commission
Applicability: "Price monopoly acts" is defined as acts of business operators that manipulate the market-regulated price, disrupt the normal production and business order, prejudice the lawful rights and interests of other business operators or consumers, or jeopardize the public interest through mutual collusion or abuse of their leading roles in the market (Article 2).

Main contents: The Provisions list the acts of collusion among business operators that are prohibited, such as uniformly determining, keeping or changing prices, manipulating prices by limiting the production or supply volume, or manipulating prices in bidding or auctions (Article 4). Business operators are also prohibited from making use of their market leading roles to restrict the re-sale price when supplying commodities to distributors, or to treat trading parties of the same conditions differently in the transaction price when providing the same products or services (Articles 5 and 8).
Related legislation: PRC Pricing Law, Dec 29 1997, CLP 1998 No.2 p51 and Administrative Penalties for Illegal Pricing Acts Provisions, Aug 1 1999