For many years, the Norwegian Competition Authority has held that the competition between the large grocery stores has been too weak, and that this means that prices are higher than they should be. In 2018, the inspectorate campaigned against the big three: Norgesgruppen, which has stores such as Kiwi and Meny, in addition to Coop and Rema 1000. The inspectorate carried out several unannounced inspections, on suspicion of illegal price collusion. At the time, the chains said they did not think they had done anything illegal. Now, according to what news learns, the supervisory authority has concluded in the so-called bounty hunting case. On Tuesday evening, the supervisory authority called for a press conference at 08.45. Notify large fees In December 2020, the Competition Authority notified fees totaling NOK 21 billion to the three major players. It was the chains’ use of price hunters that the inspectorate believed could lead to higher prices. The grocery chains, for their part, believed that the price hunters contributed to increasing competition. This spring, the case took a new turn. Then the inspectorate dropped the most serious accusations against the chains – the accusation that they had made agreements in between with the aim of limiting the competition. The notified fees were greatly reduced: Coop was notified of a fee of NOK 1.3 billion Norgesgruppen 2.3 billion Rema 1.3 billion Published 21.08.2024, at 08.32 Updated 21.08.2024, at 08.44
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