OREANDA-NEWS. February 24, 2012. A delegation of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) led by Deputy Head of FAS Andrey Tsyganov took part in the meetings of the Competition Committee of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and OECD Global Competition Forum in Paris, reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

FAS Russia made several presentations, including “Disclosing Information with Anticompetitive Effects”, “Digital Economy and Competition”, “Competition and Price Volatility on Goods Markets” and “Improving International Cooperation in Cartel Investigations”. All these issues are of undeniable interest for the antimonopoly authority, and the results of their discussions show that Russia is improving the antimonopoly law and enforcement in line with the best world practices.

As stated by Andrey Tsyganov at the Plenary Session of OECD Global Competition Forum on “Competition and Price Volatility on Goods Markets”: “FAS Russia pays special attention to control over compliance with the antimonopoly law on the infrastructure and structural markets, violations on which generate an upward price pressure for the goods of first priority. Such careful attention to these markets is predetermined first of all by the national policy of the Government of the Russian Federation towards maintaining the living standards and increasing the real income of the population of the Russian Federation”.

It should be noted that a special item on the agenda of OECD Global Competition Forum was development of international cooperation in cartel investigations, and, in particular, exchanging confidential information. Restrictions in exchanging confidential information constitute a problem for many jurisdictions; this problem is facing not only “young” competition authorities, but also the antimonopoly bodies of the EC, the USA, and Japan.

Andrey Tsyganov informed participants of OECD Global Competition Forum how RF develops cooperation at the regional level between the CIS-member-states and discussed further avenues for improving the methods for combating cartels under the framework of ICAP and the Single Economic Space.

Andrey Tsyganov especially emphasized that currently the necessary legal norms and enforcement tools for cooperation with foreign competition authorities had already been established, and their further improvement would enable exchanging confidential information in investigations of the most dangerous antimonopoly violations that restrict competition.

In general, FAS participation in such events helps enhancing reputation of the Russian Federation among competition authorities across the globe and develops relations with the leading experts in the field of competition policy.