German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt) has announced that it has imposed €100 million ($110.7 million) of fines on major German car manufacturers Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW), Daimler and Volkswagen for anticompetitive practices in long steel purchases.
According to the cartel office, between 2004 and 2013, the car manufacturers mentioned regularly met with steel producers and other related companies for exchange of information about the purchase prices of long steel products. The cartel office also said that the unlawful pricing continued until January 2016.
The companies in question have accepted the allegations and also accepted to come to an agreement with the cartel office, though the fining decisions are not yet final and can be appealed along with the finding contained in them to the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court, said the German cartel authority.