PH commission monitors fuel markets for anti-competitive practices

The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) is keeping a close watch on the country’s petroleum market and other fuel-reliant markets for any anti-competitive behavior that may arise due to Middle East war-driven fuel price shocks.

In a statement on Friday, the PCC said that under the Philippine Competition Act, it is tasked with ensuring that competition remains fair and that market outcomes are not exacerbated by collusion or exclusionary conduct of market participants.

With the ongoing pressures in global and domestic fuel markets, the antitrust watchdog said it “is closely monitoring market behavior to guard against businesses that may take advantage of the ongoing energy crisis.”

“The PCC is monitoring not only fuel markets, but also downstream markets which rely on fuels as inputs to production,” it said.

The commission issued the statement after Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said the Department of Energy (DOE) has coordinated with the PCC to check if there is indeed “anti-competitive behavior” among oil companies. 

Garin said the DOE can provide information to the PCC, as she suggested it might be time to review the system for adjusting fuel product prices.

“Even as movements in fuel prices are largely driven by global supply and demand conditions, the PCC is mindful that prolonged periods of economic downturn may tend to cause market players to take advantage of uneven access to scarce resources by entering into anti-competitive agreements or abusing their dominant position, thereby distorting competition and leading to unwarranted price increases,” the antitrust body said. 

The PCC said that while it does not regulate or set fuel prices, it stands ready to provide competition advocacy to other government agencies and regulators to ensure that policies meant to address these market stresses are least distortive to competition.

“The PCC is closely coordinating with the Department of Energy to ensure robust oversight of the sector,” it said.

The antitrust body said that its partnership with the Energy Department is anchored in a memorandum of agreement signed in 2019, which established formal mechanisms for information sharing, technical coordination, and enforcement support. 

“Such framework reinforces the PCC’s ability to monitor energy-related markets and take appropriate action when necessary,” the commission said.—LDF, GMA News