China, U.S. to sign MoU on antitrust cooperation

Xinhua, July 26, 2011

Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) of the United States Jon Leibowitz said in Beijing Monday that the U.S. will sign a memorandum of understanding with China on antitrust and antimonopoly cooperation.

The MoU will be signed on Wednesday between the U.S. Department of Justice and the FTC on the one hand, and China's National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Commerce and State Administration for Industry and Commerce, on the other hand.

Leibowitz said the MoU is mainly about merger reviews. It includes information exchange, training programs and workshops as well as providing comments on rule-making.

Cooperation is expected to primarily be on merger cases because those cases are most typically cross-border, said Randy Tritell, director of international affairs office of the FTC.

"So much economic activities are global or multinational, but antitrust laws are domestic," Tritell said, "so we have to find some ways to have a mechanism for domestic agencies to coordinate internationally, so we can all work in better harmony."

Leibowitz said the two sides share similar goals of making antitrust laws work to benefit consumers and use competition as a way to bring more choices and lower prices for consumers.

According to Tritell, the U.S. has signed MoUs on antitrust and antimonopoly cooperation with 10 nations and organizations: the European Commission, Japan, Germany, Brazil, Russia, Israel, Mexico, Chile, Australia and Canada.