Norwegian regulator pursues record fines over grocery chains' price-checking pact
The Gulating Court of Appeal will assess whether a price-monitoring agreement among Norway's three largest grocery chains weakened competition, with the competition authority seeking unprecedented penalties.
A hearing at Gulating lagmannsrett will determine if the collaboration among Norgesgruppen, Rema 1000 and Coop, which allowed staff to scan competitors' prices for up to 20 hours weekly, violated competition rules. The competition authority maintains that the arrangement lessened price competition by giving firms certainty about rivals' reactions, thereby weakening the incentive to lower prices. The grocery chains argue that such monitoring is routine and that price statistics show no adverse effect.
Professor Ronny Gjendemsjø of the University of Bergen highlights that the case may rest on abstract economic theory rather than concrete price evidence. Government lawyer Erling Hjelmeng warns that imposing fines based solely on potential harm sets a low threshold for future enforcement. The authority seeks the largest fines in its history, marking a first where penalties are based on the effect of a collaboration rather than its stated purpose.
Why it matters
The outcome could reshape how competition law is applied to collaborative pricing practices in Norway's retail sector.
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