Unit 3 Micro: Samsung and LG fined for price fixing

As A2 microeconomists approach their Unit 3 exam, they need to make sure they have good examples to support their analytical theory and should therefore be interested in the news from South Korea where the antitrust regulator has fined Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics for conspiring to fix the prices of some appliances.

The regulator said the two firms held secret meetings in 2008 and 2009 to agree on prices for washing machines, flat-panel TVs and laptop computers and has fined Samsung 25.8bn won, while LG was fined 18.8bn won. A nice relevant example of collusion, price fixing and the government’s response to this anti-competitive behaviour