FAS: IT IS IMPORTANT TO ADAPT ANTIMONOPOLY LEGISLATION TO NEW ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
It was stated by Andrey Tsyganov, Deputy Head of FAS Russia, at the 17th Conference on Competition Law, Economics and Policy in Johannesburg (South Africa)
Ibrahim Patel, Minister for Trade, Industry and Competition of South Africa, opened the Conference. He made a report in which the work of the Competition Commission of South Africa was highly appreciated, the importance of international cooperation of competition agencies was highlighted and tasks for the medium term were given for the Commission.
Andrey Tsyganov was a key speaker at the plenary session of the Conference, which was devoted to the discussion of legal standards and issues of competition regulation in digital markets. Within its framework, Deputy Head of FAS Russia spoke about the improvement of competition legislation and its application in the new economic conditions.
One of the key changes in this area can be considered the entry into force of the "fifth antimonopoly package". The document is aimed at improving the antimonopoly regulation of digital markets, including in terms of suppressing abuse of a dominant position, combating cartels and evaluating transactions of economic concentration.
In the formation of legal standards is of great importance the use of soft law mechanisms that define the boundaries of behavior of market participants and the rules of their interaction with each other and with the antimonopoly authority. In particular, in 2021, the Principles of Interaction of Digital Market Participants were approved, which were joined by the largest Russian digital companies. This document contributes to the formation of open and non-discriminatory business conditions.
Andrey Tsyganov stressed that the successful regulation of digital markets is also carried out due to international cooperation and the generalization of best practices and recommendations, including within the framework of the BRICS Working Group for Research of Competition Issues in Digital Markets.
The Conference also included sessions dedicated to ensuring competition in the food markets, in the energy sector, in the field of healthcare and medical insurance.
Besides, a meeting of the BRICS Coordination Committee on Antimonopoly Policy was held on the sidelines of the Conference, held under the auspices of the South African presidency of the BRICS in 2023, with the participation of heads and senior officials of competition agencies of all countries of the association.
During the meeting, Andrey Tsyganov spoke about current measures to support and ensure competition in socially important commodity markets in the Russian Federation, as well as about priority areas for the development of cooperation in the field of competition policy in the year of Russia's BRICS presidency in 2024.
In addition, international cooperation in the BRICS format was discussed within the framework of Working Groups for Research of Competition Issues in socially important markets (pharmaceutical, food, automotive and digital markets).
The Conference also included a bilateral meeting between Andrey Tsyganov and Doris Tshepe, Head of the Competition Commission of South Africa.
The parties discussed the state and prospects of cooperation between the antimonopoly authorities of both countries, which has been developing intensively since 2016, when a Memorandum of Understanding in the field of competition policy was signed.
An important area of cooperation between the countries is cooperation in enforcement, for example, consultations when considering cases of violation of antimonopoly legislation by large multinational companies and global transactions of economic concentration that affect the state of competition in Russia and South Africa. Competition agencies assist each other in conducting research on socially significant markets. FAS Russia shared its experience in the regulation of power grids, digital platforms and pricing in the agricultural market. Competition Commission of South Africa, in turn, sent materials on the regulation of digital markets and the market of fresh vegetables and fruits to FAS Russia.
The parties actively use the instruments of international cooperation provided for in the documents of international organizations, including the Guiding Policies and Procedures under Section F (of the UN Set on Competition. The document was developed on the initiative of FAS Russia together with a number of competition agencies, in particular, the Competition Commission of South Africa.
At the end of the meeting, Andrey Tsyganov noted the high level of strategic partnership between the antimonopoly authorities of Russia and South Africa.
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The event was attended by representatives of government agencies, legal, business and scientific communities, civil society institutions from more than 20 states and international organizations, including FAS Russia and the BRICS Competition Law and Policy Centre.