The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) is closely monitoring fuel markets behavior to guard against businesses that may take advantage amid ongoing pressures in global and domestic fuel market.
In a statement, the PCC said it is monitoring not only fuel markets, but also downstream markets which rely on fuels as inputs to production.
Under the Philippine Competition Act, the PCC is tasked with ensuring that competition remains fair and that market outcomes are not exacerbated by collusion or exclusionary conduct of market participants.
Even as movements in fuel prices are largely driven by global supply and demand conditions, the PCC is mindful that prolonged periods of economic downturn may tend to cause market players to take advantage of uneven access to scarce resources by entering into anti-competitive agreements or abusing their dominant position, thereby distorting competition and leading to unwarranted price increases.
While the PCC does not regulate or set fuel prices, it stands ready to provide competition advocacy to other government agencies and regulators to ensure that policies meant to address these market stresses are least distortive to competition.
The PCC is closely coordinating with the Department of Energy to ensure robust oversight of the sector. This partnership is anchored in a memorandum of agreement signed in 2019, which established formal mechanisms for information sharing, technical coordination, and enforcement support. Such framework reinforces the PCC’s ability to monitor energy-related markets and take appropriate action when necessary.
The PCC likewise encourages industry participants, stakeholders, and the public to report any information or evidence of possible anti-competitive conduct in the fuel markets through the agency’s case reporting system, which may be accessed at https://ccms.phcc.gov.ph, or through its other official communication channels.
