UOKiK hosted the international seminar concerning the application of economy in the field of competition protection. Participants were discussing issues such as the potential impact of economic analyses on increasing the effectiveness of detecting bid-rigging. Economic tools are also used to monitor the competition on the markets. The latest analysis of UOKiK is related to the Polish railway freight transport

For the last few years we have witnessed the gradual progress of economising the competition law. Applying economic tools in antimonopoly proceedings allows for estimation of effects of practices being subject to the analysis of the Office. In fact this may concern both examining the effects of mergers and acquisitions, conducting cases in prohibited agreements and the abuse of a dominant position. Furthermore, economic tools can be used to give directions and picture the scale of prospective changes as well as to measure their results. Economic analyses enhance the predictability of actions taken by antimonopoly authorities and as a consequence - of decisions they make.

Participants to the meeting held by UOKiK on 22^nd November this year were discussing  how to use the economy in detecting and prosecuting the prohibited agreements. The seminar entitled “Effective use of economics in competition enforcement” was attended among others by Kai-Uwe Kűhn, Chief Competition Economist at the European Commission, as well as representatives of national competition protection authorities, OECD, consulting companies, research institutes, lawyers and economists.

Participants to the meeting held by UOKiK on 22^nd November this year were discussing  how to use the economy in detecting and prosecuting the prohibited agreements. The seminar entitled "Effective use of economics in competition enforcement" was attended among others by Kai-Uwe Kűhn, Chief Competition Economist at the European Commission, as well as representatives of national competition protection authorities, OECD, consulting companies, research institutes, lawyers and economists.

In the first part of the meeting attendees discussed the ways of effective application of economic tools in detecting and prosecuting bid-rigging on the market. The second panel was devoted to the efficient presentation of economic evidence in decisions issued by animonopoly authorities also at the stage of defending them before the court.

- Nowadays it is common practice that in the structures of competition protection authorities there are expert units dealing with market research. Department of Market Analyses, UOKiK, has been already operating for 10 years and was one of the first departments of this kind. It conducts a wide range of research studies and analyses, monitors the competition and obeying the law in particular market segments – during her opening speech said Monika Bronkau-Ługowska, Director General, UOKiK.

Cases of highest complexity and great significance to the national economy are handled in UOKiK by expert teams composed of lawyers and economists, which guarantees the most comprehensible assessment. In some proceedings economists provide their counseling, in others – complex market analyses whose results are presented as reports. This year the Office drafted inter alia  reports on the development of competition on the gas market and competition within municipal waste collection.

One of research studies completed this year relates to the national freight transport market with an emphasis on the railway freight transport. The analysis covered the period October 2010 - March 2012. The document drafted based on it refers to the market conditions in the period 2009-2010. Over 200 undertakings provided information to use in the research. The main focus of the examination was the Polish market of railway freight transport services, however, the Office obtained also data concerning other modes of transport, complementary to the main focus of the survey.

The analysis was aimed also at determining the market extent and the market share of particular carriers. Three criteria were taken into account: freight’s weight, transportation work performed and revenue from the sales of railway transport services. In 2010 this market reached the following values, respectively: 206 mln tones, nearly 46 mln tkm or PLN 5 billion. The data collected by the Office clearly shows that similarly to the previous years, PKP Group still enjoys a dominant position on the market of railway freight transport. Regardless of the applied research method, the market share of PKP was between 50 and 80%. Entities ranking next were DB capital groups and CTL, whose joint market share was still a few times lower as compared to the PKP Group. The slightest difference between the market power of PKP and competitors appeared when confronting the market shares as regards the weight of carried goods.

Another vital aspect of the research was to check if it is still reasonable for UOKiK to treat the railway freight transport as one market at country level, as reflected in decisions issued to date within the railway transport. Some carriers expressed the opinion  that the freight transport market should be divided into: whole-trainset (where the whole set of train provides the service to one recipient) and dispersed (where one set of train carries goods of different undertakings). The analysis gave evidence that arguments in favour of such division are not sufficient to take into account two separate relevant markets.

Moreover, a market broader that the domestic one cannot be taken into account as it is inter alia required to obtain the safety certificate valid in Poland, apply a different rolling-stock properly adjusted to the tractions used in Poland and varied rates for using the railway infrastructure in particular countries.

The seminar “Effective use of economics in competition enforcement” was held within the Chief Economist Working Group, DG Competition, EC. This year UOKiK was the host to the meeting.

Presenations

• Presentation: Rosa M. Abrantes-Metz (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Kai Hüschelrath (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Arvid Fredenberg (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Fiorenzo Bovenzi (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Pierluigi Sabbatini (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: João E. Gata (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Jarig van Sinderen (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Jarosław Sroczyński (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Agnieszka Stefanowicz-Barańska (2012.11.22)
• Presentation: Szymon Chwaliński (2012.11.22)
  
   

Additional information for the media:
Małgorzata Cieloch, Spokesperson for UOKiK
Department of International Relations and Communication
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warszawa
Tel.: +48 22 827 28 92, 55 60 106, 55 60 314
Fax +48 22 826 11 86
E-mail: [SCODE]bWFsZ29yemF0YS5jaWVsb2NoQHVva2lrLmdvdi5wbA==[ECODE]