The decision underscores the consistency between administrative agencies and the judicial system, legal observers noted.
China's Supreme Court has recently affirmed a 2021 cartel decision against three camphor raw material manufacturers, according to the provincial competition regulator in Jiangsu.
In June 2021, the Jiangsu provincial Administration for Market Regulation imposed fines on three Chinese active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturers, ranging from 1 to 5 percent of their revenues for 2018, after finding that they had fixed the selling price of camphor and divided sales territories among themselves.
In its statement yesterday, the local agency said the case spanned six years from the investigation's official launch in 2019, as it went through an administrative review and both first-instance and second-instance trials challenging the decision.
Although the regulator did not specify who filed the challenges, MLex reported that at least one of the companies, Wuzhou Huangpu, pursued an administrative lawsuit after its failed attempt to overturn the penalty decision through administrative reconsideration with the State Administration for Market Regulation.
✔️ Wuzhou Huangpu is a well-known state-owned API manufacturer for camphor and borneol. Its synthetic camphor under the Guangda brand complies with the pharmacopoeia standard of many countries and is sold domestically and abroad.
The previous dismissal of Wuzhou Huangpu's challenges at a Jiangsu court was showcased as an example of the coherent enforcement by administrative agencies and the judicial system in 2022.
The recent Supreme Court affirmation further underscores the consistency between these two systems, legal observers noted.
The provincial regulator added that its decision restored competition in the CP camphor API market, with prices decreasing from nearly 400 yuan (about $54) per kilogram during the monopoly period to around 200 yuan per kilogram.
It pointed out that its antitrust intervention had effectively curbed unreasonable price increases and maintained long-term stability, significantly reducing production costs for formulation companies.
Source: MLex
