The Effects of Price Fixing in the Industrial Thread Industry Research Paper

The Effects of Price Fixing in the Industrial Thread Industry - Research Paper Example Industrial thread is a very important product regarding its use in various other sectors. It is used to â€Å"sew or embroider various products such as clothes, home furnishings, automotive seats and seatbelts, leather goods, mattresses, footwear, ropes, etc.† (â€Å"Commission fines nine companies a total of â‚ ¬ 43.5 million for participating in industrial thread cartels†, 2006, p.1) The 6 billion Euro worth of market world wide even back in 2005 depicts its importance. The commission identified three cartels operating within the system; two of them belonging to industrial thread. The two industrial thread cartels were i) â€Å"a cartel on the market in thread for industrial customers in Benelux and the Nordic countries from January 1990 until September 2001†; ii) â€Å"a cartel on the market in thread for industrial customers in the United Kingdom from October 1990 until September 1996.† (â€Å"Competition: Commission fines producers†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , 2005, p.1) The cartel in industrial thread that remained operative in Benelux and Nordic countries involved seven companies. All of them were identified and their names with their respective amount of fines are given below. The industrial thread cartel that was operative in United Kingdom had been spared from any fine since there was â€Å"no proof that the undertakings participated in a continuous cartel within the five years preceding the Commission’s inspections in November 2001.† (â€Å"Competition: Commission fines producers of industrial thread a total of â‚ ¬43.497 million for cartels†, 2005, p.1) The anger and hate that was involved in the words of Neelie Krores the Competition Commissioner might be of interest while realising the evil of cartel, â€Å"Cartel behaviour is illegal, unjustified and unjustifiable, and will be punished severely no matter how large or small the companies involved.