Four months ago mergers and acquisitions in Costa Rica were conducted without any governmental control.
Now, operations of this type over $15 million must be authorized by the Commission to Promote Competition (COPROCOM) in the first four months of rule of law, four mergers or acquisitions of companies have been authorized
Nación.com reports: "It is related to the purchase of the dairy company Monteverde by Sigma Alimentos, the acquisition of Archives Beeche by Document Management Solutions SRL (DMS), the sale of El Lagar to Ashland Financial SA and the sale of Almacenes El Colono to Agricultore (sic) Advisory Corp. SA ".
As of April 5 mergers and acquisitions will have to be approved at the Antitrust Commission, part of the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Trade, before they can take place.
From that date, the Antitrust Commission, at the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Commerce (MEIC), will have the power to approve or deny deals, if it is concluded that they would result in undue concentration of business.
In Costa Rica five companies may have coordinated their bids in a contest to award the local municipal administration of a sporting event.
Elfinancierocr.com reports that "The companies BGL Consultores Internacionales INC S. A., MPCM Desarrollos S.A., Cooperativa de Vivienda R.L. (Coopecasa), Ganadería Chinchilla S.A. and Ganadería Tres Equis S.A. could be sanctioned for an alleged breach in the contest for the management of the Zapote bullring.
In Costa Rica the Commission to Promote Competition has fined Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia and Continental Continex for "obviously anticompetitive conduct."
Faced with a complaint lodged by the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE), the Commission to Promote Competition (COPROCOM) at the Ministry of Economy and Commerce, fined each company $236 thousand, for "obviously anticompetitive conduct."
The Commission to Promote Competition has opened an investigation into the international company, which has been accused by pork producers in Costa Rica of setting the prices of pork cuts below the market price.
The Commission to Promote Competition (COPROCOM) agreed to initiate a preliminary investigation against the supermarket chain Wal-Mart for alleged monopolistic practices, reported Nacion.com.
The Costa Rica Chamber of Pork Producers is taking Walmart to the Commission for the Promotion of Competition (CPC) for alleged monopolistic practices.
The Chamber’s measure is based on an alleged drop in prices of pork cuts at levels below market value, reports Nacion.com.
The Speaker of the House, Renato Alvarado said an inspection of prices was conducted in different supermarkets belonging to the chain, confirming that the practice of lower prices was observed in places where the producer wants to go 'vertical' (participating in all stages of chain from production to slaughter).
The company Mabeca has filed an appeal citing unconstitutionality with the Sala IV (Constitutional Court) of Costa Rica, claiming disproportionality in the fine of $2.3 million that has been applied to them.
In August 2011, the Commission to Promote Competition under the Costa Rican Ministry of Economy, found that after the acquisition of Atlas Eléctrica by Mexican company Mabe in 2008, there was a "prohibited concentration" according to the law for promoting competition and consumer protection, and imposed a fine of $2.3 million.
In order to avoid paying penalties after a merger it is possible to obtain endorsement of the operation from the Commission to Promote Competition (COPROCOM).
A statement from the COPROCOM reads:
In Costa Rica, unlike most countries with greater developments in Competition Law, control of concentrations is provided for after the event, ie, once the transaction has occurred.
The recent fine imposed on Mabe has revived controversy over the nature of the regulations.
Two bills relating to monopolies, under analysis in the Legislative Assembly, might be reactivated earlier than expected, after the Commission for the Promotion of Competition (COPROCOM) decided to fine the company Mabe for unlawful concentration in the market.
Following the purchase of the Costa Rican company Atlas, the Mexican group Mabe has near total monopoly of the household appliances sector.
The Commission to Promote Competition in Costa Rican’s Ministry of Economy, found that after the acquisition of Atlas, there was a 'prohibited concentration", according to the law to promote competition and consumer protection.
The Commission for the Promotion of Competition has recommended that permission to show the origin of coffee on labels should be company specific, not per brand.
The proposal comes from Costa Rica’s national coffee institute (Icafe) and is regarding the “100% grown and harvested in Costa Rica” coffee seal. The new rule would mean that a company selling brands of coffee containing coffee from other countries could no longer use the seal.
The Committee for Promoting Competition recommended investigating a “potentially punishable monopolistic practice”.
COPROCOM, the Committee for Promoting Competition in Costa Rica, signaled a series of defects in the regulations overseeing the seal of “100% Costa Rica grown and harvested” coffee, which is awarded by the Costa Rican Coffee Institute (Icafé).