A search has been underway in the factory of refrigerator and freezer manufacturer Liebherr in Lienz since Tuesday. There is a suspicion of anti-competitive price fixing. The end of the raid is not yet in sight.
The Federal Competition Authority (BWB) has been investigating the East Tyrolean factory in Lienz for several days. The reason for the house search is the suspicion of anti-competitive agreements on prices for refrigerators and freezers. As the APA discovered, it’s not yet possible to say exactly when the raid will be completed. Nine BWB employees are on site.
Juicy punishment threatened
Under antitrust law, collusion over prices, restrictions on control or sales generation, and market sharing are prohibited. Violations can result in a fine of up to ten percent of the total turnover. The company itself confirmed the searches to the APA: “Liebherr takes the relevant suspicions seriously and will cooperate openly and fully with the responsible competition authorities.”
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
