VITAMIN TIN Case: 4.1 European Invesstitution Furcings
4. VITAMIN CARTEL CASE
4.1 EU INVESTIGATION FINDINGS
According to the World Trade Organization (WTO) (2001), in 1989 two European vitamins manufacturers Roche and BASF started the cartels. They decided to increase the prices of vitamins A and E gradually to a geographic division to the world’s markets. Roche and BASF skillfully garnered over seventy percent of sales in these markets and later successfully co-opted their principal rivals, Rhone-Poulenc and Eisai. Through 1991, these four companies basically controlled the world price for vitamins A and E; a situation they were able to endure until 1999. As illustrated by Table 1, the collaborators’ achievement encouraged them to further the scope of the cartel to include other vitamins and other producers.
By the end of the 1990s, about twenty two manufacturers had at one time been involved in the twelve “wheels” (cartels) within the vitamins conspiracy. The price fixing was so elaborate in the vitamin industry that it was considered by the European Commission as single conspiracy (WTO, 2001). According to the EU Commission (2004) five conspirators lasted until 1998 as …show more content…
Providing a great number of jobs and development while creating opportunities for individuals within the markets. As such progress are being made some co-operations seek to take advantage of such a markets by creating cartels and other anti- competitive practices which are detrimental to the welfare of customers. Therefore it is the EU Commission’s objective to enforce policies maintain their objectives of an open and competitive marketplace. To do this specific legislations, fines, prosecution and deterrents are needed to ensure and fair and open market. In the case of the vitamin cartels after decades of anti-completion practices the subsequent conclusion of the case was bring a balance back to an industry manipulated by only a
4.1 EU INVESTIGATION FINDINGS
According to the World Trade Organization (WTO) (2001), in 1989 two European vitamins manufacturers Roche and BASF started the cartels. They decided to increase the prices of vitamins A and E gradually to a geographic division to the world’s markets. Roche and BASF skillfully garnered over seventy percent of sales in these markets and later successfully co-opted their principal rivals, Rhone-Poulenc and Eisai. Through 1991, these four companies basically controlled the world price for vitamins A and E; a situation they were able to endure until 1999. As illustrated by Table 1, the collaborators’ achievement encouraged them to further the scope of the cartel to include other vitamins and other producers.
By the end of the 1990s, about twenty two manufacturers had at one time been involved in the twelve “wheels” (cartels) within the vitamins conspiracy. The price fixing was so elaborate in the vitamin industry that it was considered by the European Commission as single conspiracy (WTO, 2001). According to the EU Commission (2004) five conspirators lasted until 1998 as …show more content…
Providing a great number of jobs and development while creating opportunities for individuals within the markets. As such progress are being made some co-operations seek to take advantage of such a markets by creating cartels and other anti- competitive practices which are detrimental to the welfare of customers. Therefore it is the EU Commission’s objective to enforce policies maintain their objectives of an open and competitive marketplace. To do this specific legislations, fines, prosecution and deterrents are needed to ensure and fair and open market. In the case of the vitamin cartels after decades of anti-completion practices the subsequent conclusion of the case was bring a balance back to an industry manipulated by only a