PARLIAMENT PASSES BILL TO PENALIZE UNFAIR COMPANIES
ARMENPRESS
Dec 18 2007
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian parliament has passed
today in the first reading a bill, which, if passed, would force
companies dominating in the domestic commodities market to transfer
all their profits to the budget if a government commission finds that
they played a role in groundless rise of prices, holding them down
or maintaining them without grounds.
The bill was submitted by the governing Republican Party. A co-author,
Gagik Minasian, who chairs a parliament committee on budget and
finance issues, said to his fellows that the bill was prompted by a
series of groundless recent rise of prices of a number of goods in
Armenia. He said the bill envisages application of mechanisms that
would stave off ungrounded price hikes.
He said also the bill ‘tries to fix in clear words what ungrounded
price hike means in respect of dominating companies which hold 33
percent of the local market. He said all price hikes not supported
by economic factors are deemed as ‘ungrounded."
He said the bill will be put to a second reading in spring.