The Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Supply has handled 53 cases related to competition and its promotion in the local market, in implementation of the Competition Law, from the beginning of the year until the end of October.
اضافة اعلان
According to a ministry statement on Wednesday, the cases included reviewing complaints and consultations, examining merger operations, and requests for economic concentration submitted by various economic sectors.
Ministry spokesperson, Ninal Al-Barmawi, said that through its Competition Directorate, the ministry pursues several objectives to ensure fair competition among goods and service providers, supporting the national economy, protecting consumer interests, and enhancing the business environment by upholding market rules and price freedom within regulatory frameworks that safeguard fair competition.
He added that the ministry handled 17 complaints related to violations of competition rules during the period, covering multiple sectors, including processed meats, dairy, yeast, bakery products, soft drinks, pharmaceuticals, metal industries, telecommunications, digital applications and systems, mobile devices, auto parts, health products, and delivery service companies.
The Competition Directorate conducted the necessary studies and took direct actions against some violators to halt practices and correct situations, ensuring proper market mechanisms.
Regarding preemptive oversight of economic concentration operations, which aim to prevent market-structure changes that could harm competition, the ministry handled 31 cases: 24 requests for opinion, 4 mergers, and 3 economic concentration requests across various sectors including dairy, carpets, textiles, vehicle trade, bakeries, aviation, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, ICT, chemicals and construction materials, insurance, delivery and logistics services, wood trade, jewelry trade, electronics, and fuel sector, issuing the required decisions.
Al-Barmawi noted that the ministry also played an advisory role by providing opinions on five competition-related matters submitted by public and private institutions, helping clarify legal provisions and enabling institutions to adjust their practices and avoid anti-competitive behavior.
Economic concentration is defined as any act that results in the full or partial transfer of ownership, usufruct rights, shares, or obligations from one institution to another, enabling an institution or group to directly or indirectly control another institution or group of institutions.
