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China: Eye care firms, including Johnson & Johnson, hit with pricing fines

By  |  May 29, 2014

China’s National Development and Reform Commission announced Thursday that it has issued fines to several eyewear and contact lens companies for anticompetitive behavior, according to reports.

The NRDC announced on its website that it imposed more than $3 million in fines against Johnson & Johnson, Valeant Pharmaceutical-owned Bausch + Lomb and other companies for abusing their market dominance to manipulate costs, restrict retail prices and unfairly control agreements for product promotions.

In addition to the US and Canadian firms fined, the companies sanctioned hail from France, Japan, and Germany. The fines follow recent spikes in anti-monopoly crackdowns within China following the implementation of its new competition law in 2008.

The fines also follow some criticism that China is unfairly targeting foreign companies in its competition regulation.

Full content: Wall Street Journal

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