The European Commission announced unannounced inspections at tire makers including Michelin, Continental, Nokian and Goodyear on Tuesday, raising concerns about possible price fixing in violation of European Union competition rules.
The Commission, which ensures competition in the European Union (EU), has said it fears “that price coordination has taken place” between several companies in the sector, in a press release published in Brussels. It does not reveal the names, but specifies that the products concerned by the inspections are new replacement tires for passenger cars, vans, trucks and buses sold in Europe.
Michelin confirmed on Tuesday that it was one of the European tire manufacturers subject to these inspections by the European Commission. The French group, however, contests “categorically the existence of anti-competitive practices as mentioned by the European Commission in its communication today, and a fortiori any practice of coordination on prices”, assured a spokesperson for the tire giant in a message to Agence France-Presse (AFP). Michelin emphasizes that it “scrupulously applies competition rules in all countries in which it operates”.
Inspections at Continental, Nokian and Goodyear
The German tire manufacturer Continental quickly confirmed that it was concerned by the investigations carried out in several EU member countries. “Antitrust inspections are underway at Continental in Germany”, declared a spokesperson to AFP. The Finnish Nokian and the American Goodyear also affirmed that they were concerned, and assured “cooperate fully” with the authorities.
“Unannounced inspections are a preliminary step in any investigation into suspected anti-competitive practices. The fact that the Commission carries out such inspections does not mean that the companies are guilty and does not prejudge the outcome of the investigation itself”underlined the European executive.
In these types of competition violations, a company found guilty can be fined up to 10% of its global annual turnover. No legal deadline is set for carrying out this type of investigation. Shares of companies in the sector lost ground on the stock market after the announcement of the surprise inspections.