OREANDA-NEWS. April 15, 2010. In the near future the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) is going to finalize the forms for applications and petitions in accordance with the "Regulations on preliminary coordination of specific features of initial pricing for the products to be sold through a commodities exchange", reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

On 1st April 2010, the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, signed the Government Decree that approved the Regulations.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) devised the Regulations to exercise the authority given to it by the antimonopoly law (Clause 2 Part 1 Article 23 of the Federal Law "On Protection of Competition" - issuing a mandatory determination to economic entities on preliminary approval by the antimonopoly body of specific features of initial pricing for the products to be sold through a commodities exchange).

Preparing the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation, FAS Russia relied on its positive experience of using exchange mechanisms of price regulation for the market-dominating companies that trade their products through exchange.

When the "second antimonopoly package" came into force, the practice of antimonopoly regulation through exchange mechanisms became legally formalized. In 2009 the following actions were added to the List of mandatory determinations of the antimonopoly authority to the companies:

- Selling a specified volume of goods through a commodities exchange;

- Preliminary approval by the antimonopoly body of specific features of initial pricing for the products to be sold through a commodities exchange.

The Regulations establish the procedures for approval by the antimonopoly body of specific features of initial pricing for the products to be sold through a commodities exchange when a company is issued a determination following a case on violating the antimonopoly law.

Also the Regulations provides for the right of the company to agree with FAS Russia upon amending earlier established specific features of initial pricing if product circulation conditions have been changed.

The antimonopoly body approves specific features of initial pricing for the products to be sold through a commodities exchange based on competitive prices and price range proposed by the company.

The Regulations formalize various approaches to initial pricing. First, for a trading session where the only seller is an economic entity that has violated the antimonopoly law, apart from the deviation range of transaction prices the antimonopoly body approves upon deviation of the initial price from the weighted average product price at the previous trading session. Second, transactions with affiliated persons are taking into account for establishing the initial price if at the previous trading session more than 50% of the bidders wishing to buy the products were not affiliated with the economic entity.

An important provision is the right of the companies to sell products through a commodities exchange outside the price range. Concluding such transaction companies should notify the antimonopoly body.

FAS Russia verifies price values of the transactions and, depending on the inspection findings, makes a decision on conformity of the price values, or on changing the calculations and competitive pricing procedures if it has established changes in product circulation conditions in accordance with the antimonopoly legislation.