December 26, 2023

Malaysia's Leong Hup voices opposition against competition authority's infringement finding

Malaysia's Leong Hup International Berhad (LHI) has contested the Malaysia Competition Commission's (MyCC) infringement finding after being accused of forming a "chicken feed cartel" to fix prices.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, LHI said that the company, along with Leong Hup Feedmill Malaysia Sdn Bhd (LFM), "strongly believe" that the regulator's findings were without merit.

"In consultation with its external legal counsel, the company and LFM will take the necessary and appropriate action to challenge the decision and apply for a stay," the filing stated.

Separately, FFM Bhd told the stock exchange it would consult with its external legal counsel to challenge the competition commission's decision to impose a penalty of RM42.69 million (US$9.3 million) for price-fixing infringement. The group said FFM is of the view that the decision is without merit and would take legal advice "on the appropriate actions to take to challenge the decision".

FFM, which operates a flour mill and animal feed mill, is a subsidiary of the PPB Group.

On December 22, MyCC fined LFM, FFM and three other companies a total of RM415 million (US$90 million) for forming a cartel to fix prices of chicken feed.

MyCC chief executive officer Iskandar Ismail said the firms allegedly agreed to raise the price of poultry feed, which distorted chicken prices.

Investigations found that the five companies, the country's biggest chicken feed producers, violated the Competition Act by having an agreement between them with the goal or effect of "preventing, restricting or distorting competition" in any market for goods or services.

- FMT