Record Fines Imposed in Chinese Maotai Liquor RPM Cases

On 22 February 2013, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) imposed record penalties under China's Anti-Monopoly Law (AML) of RMB 449 million on two liquor companies for resale price maintenance (RPM) practices.

These two new NDRC decisions signal not only a new hardline approach to enforcement of the AML's behavioural prohibitions generally (in that respect the rulings hammer home a message most recently conveyed in LCD Panels where the NDRC imposed sanctions of RMB 353 million on six Korean and Taiwanese companies), but also possibly set the stage for a clash with China's judiciary which appears to take more of a 'rule of reason' approach to RPM.