**Hansol Paper and Moorim Sanctioned for Collusion; Some Entities Reported to Prosecutors**
In a move to curb collusion, proposals include canceling registrations and licenses for repeat offenders.
(Sejong = Yonhap News) Reporter Lee Sewon – Six companies manufacturing printing paper colluded on prices for nearly four years and have been fined and ordered to reset prices by the Fair Trade Commission (FTC).
FTC Chairman Joo Byeong-gi announced on the 23rd that Hansol Paper and Moorim, among six paper companies, were caught secretly agreeing on printing paper prices used in the education and publishing sectors for 3 years and 10 months. As a result, they have been issued corrective orders and a total of 338.3 billion KRW in fines.
At a special task force meeting on consumer prices, presided over by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance Koo Yoon-cheol at the Government Complex Seoul, Joo conveyed the FTC’s decision made at the plenary session the day before.
In addition to breaking away from price collusion, a mandate for independent pricing decisions has been issued, and some entities will be reported to the prosecutors.
The FTC proposed measures during the meeting to effectively remove or block repeat colluders from operating in the market. This includes extending the registration and license cancellation system—currently applied to repeat collusion offenders in the construction and real estate sectors—to industries where collusion frequently occurs, and increasing the surcharge weighting factor to 100% for repeat collusion.