U.S. antitrust crackdown costs Korean firms $1.6b

Korean antitrust regulator advises firms to be prudent


Korean companies in the United States have paid about 1.7 trillion won ($1.6 billion) in fines for price-fixing and four out of the top 10 highest-paying companies were from Korea, a ranking official of the state-run antitrust regulator said Wednesday.

The Fair Trade Commission on Wednesday explained the business environment of the U.S. on collusive wrongdoings in New York, with some 100 executives of Korean companies in attendance.

According to the FTC, a total of 12 ranking officials of Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics, LG Display, Korean Air and Hynix Semiconductor, have faced imprisonment in the United States for being involved in price-fixing cases such as the price of DRAM semiconductor and LCD panel and the fare of air freight, with some officials waiting to be sentenced.

“The United States is a strict country against price-fixing to the point that President Barack Obama declared war on international cartels as a campaign pledge,” said Kim Soon-jong, director general of international cartels at the FTC.

“The country has tightened its crackdown on collusion and price-fixing and if found guilty, company officials are to face criminal charges and civil suits as well as large fines.”

Kim also recommended that attending executives refrain from meeting with those from rival companies, saying “one contact for a simple purpose of information collecting can be punishable and even if collusion takes place, it’s also possible that the rival company abandons the agreement.”

He also advised the use of the “leniency program,” which shelves punishment for companies that voluntarily admit collusion, before the rival company involved in price fixing.

Legal experts in Korea and the United States also participated in the event. One of them was Portia Brown, an official from the U.S. Department of Justice who explained the procedure and policy direction of the country’s leniency program.

The FTC event, aimed at preventing international cartel activities by Korean companies overseas, was the second this year following the first in London in May. The FTC plans to hold a similar event in Beijing in November.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)