A.

OVERVIEW

1. What is Competition Law?

Competition law refers to the framework of rules and regulations designed to foster
the competitive environment in a national economy. It consists of measures intended to
promote a more competitive environment as well as enactments designed to prevent a
reduction in competition.

2. What is Competition Policy?

Competition policy broadly refers to all laws, government policies and regulations
aimed at establishing competition and maintaining the same. It includes measures intended
to promote, advance and ensure competitive market conditions by the removal of control, as
well as to redress anti-competitive results of public and private restrictive practices.

3. What are the goals of Competition Policy?

 To promote economic efficiency, which comprises three (3) components:

 Productive efficiency – firms use the least cost production techniques to

produce maximum possible goods and services from given inputs.

 Allocative efficiency – resources are channeled to those sectors where they

are best utilized in order to produce goods and services that are valued most
highly by consumers.

 Dynamic efficiency – firms strive to maintain their competitiveness by

investing in research and development, innovation, marketing and
management to keep abreast of the changes in technology, preferences and
products.

 To correct market failure

 To enhance consumer welfare

 To achieve higher economic growth

 To promote competitiveness in both domestic and foreign market

4. What are the basic market structures in which the degree of competition
affects prices, output and profits?

 Perfect Competition - an ideal or extreme form of competition. It occurs when a

market consists of many firms selling an identical product to many buyers. Any
firm that wishes to do so can enter or leave the market.

 Monopoly - a market with a sole supplier of a good, service or resource for which
there is no close substitute. In addition, there are barriers to entry of new firms.

 Natural Monopoly - arises from natural barriers to entry (such as a unique source
of supply) or situation in which one firm can supply the entire market at a lower
price than two or more firms could offer.

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 2

  Monopolistic Competition - similar to perfect competition, but rather than firms
producing identical products, these are many firms competing against each other
by producing similar but slightly different products.

 Oligopoly - is characterized by a small number of firms where quantity sold by

any one firm is influenced by its choice in respect of strategic variables (such as
prices, product design, research and development, advertising, and sales
locations) and these choices are strongly influenced by other firms in the industry.

5. What is market failure?

Market failure occurs when the market is unable to achieve an efficient and equitable
allocation of resources.

6. What are the sources of market failure?

 Public Goods – which if provided to one consumer, is freely available to all

consumers.

 Income Distribution – the market will not necessarily ensure equitable distribution
of incomes. This may motivate government to introduce policies to redistribute
wealth through measures, i.e., income taxes and social security benefits.

 Monopoly – the operations of monopoly or natural monopoly often result in

misuse of market power and inefficient allocation of resources, which reduce
community welfare. For this reason, governments generally regulate monopoly
and enforce laws preventing cartels. This type of market scenario is a major
rationale for a comprehensive competition policy.

 Externalities – arise when an activity confers a benefit (like the benefit of

education or immunization) or imposes a cost (pollution) on a third party, without
the cost or benefit being included in the market price of that activity.

 Information Asymmetries – in theory, buyers and sellers in a competitive market

have complete knowledge about a product or service characteristics and quality.
Information asymmetries between producers and consumers can lead to market
failure and reduce community welfare.

7. What are the competitive conduct rules?

Competitive Conduct – describes the decision-making processes of firms in a

competitive market, where price, quantity and profit choices are dictated by overall
market conditions and these are not unduly influenced by the actions of one or more
large firms. In essence, competitive conduct describes firm behavior under
conditions of perfect competition.

Competitive Conduct Rules – are government’s response to the absence of perfect

competition in a market. Their primary objective should be to protect or enhance the
competitive process in markets where it is only partially operating.

 Competitive conduct rules codify acceptable behavior in an economy. Typically,

such rules prohibit arrangements that can be construed as anti-competitive, in
that they either:

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  Increase the power of firms within a market to the extent that this inhibits
competitive conduct; or

 Prohibit existing competitors or potential market entrants from effectively

competing.

Competitive Process – competitive conduct that reduces costs and prices, which is
driven by impersonal and diffuse market forces and the threat of entry of additional
suppliers. It results in efficient resource allocation and pricing, which can be attained
in open, dynamic markets resembling perfect competition.

8. What are anti-competitive agreements?

The Hilmer Report (Hilmer 1993) identifies several market outcomes or agreements
which can be viewed as anti-competitive. These are:

 Horizontal Agreements – exist between firms (suppliers or consumers) at the

same level of production chain. This is often referred to as collusion. Collusion
usually takes the form of an agreement on price, such a combination of firms
provides them with a degree of pricing power, or in other words, the ability to at
least influence the price of a good.

 Vertical Agreements – may vary where firms at different stages of the production
chain collude. In most cases, vertical collusion occurs between suppliers and
users of business inputs. This may relate to price or other matters (i.e. quotas,
exclusive dealings, etc.).

 Misuse of Market Power – a type of anti-competitive conduct which occurs when

a single firm in a dominant position in a market misuses its market power.

Ex: predatory pricing

 Mergers and acquisitions - can constitute inappropriate market behavior where

they lead to market outcomes of the type described above. It is unlikely that a
move towards increasing market concentration will normally be viewed as
favorably affecting competition.

Potential solutions to anti-competitive conduct include:

 Per se Prohibition – the most direct form of anti-competitive measure that an

authority can undertake. It refers to those activities which are ambiguously
detrimental to regular competitive behavior in a market (e.g., price fixing).

 Rule of Reason (Competition Test) – a wide variety of business practices that

while inhibiting competition, may not require total prohibition. The most widely
used determinant in such a case is whether or not such activity reduces
competition in the market.

 Authorization – a mechanism through which the public benefit from ostensibly

anti-competitive conduct can be assessed as a counter balancing consideration.
The process involved here is a direct intervention or inquiry by a governing
commission. Authorization implies that the commission can “authorize” certain
conduct where there is a perceived net benefit to the community from anti-
competitive conduct.

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  Notification – involves the approval of certain types of anti-competitive conduct
upon the offender being granted immunity, conditional on the consent of the
market regulator. This type of arrangement relies on absolute openness and
transparency.

Examples of anti-competitive conduct are:

 Price-fixing agreement – competitors agree to fix prices at a particular level, use

of less obvious devices such as “recommended prices”, in reality, fix prices by
agreement.

 Market sharing agreement – agreement among competitors to share a market.

Ex: a number of producers may choose to restrict their sales to certain

geographic areas, thus developing local monopolies.

 Exclusionary provision – agreement between competitors to limit dealings with a

particular supplier or customer or a particular class of customer.

Ex: primary boycotts, secondary boycotts. These actions are taken to

prevent new firms from entering the market, or to force existing firms out of
the market.

Primary boycotts or exclusionary provisions occur when a group of

people or firms agree not to deal with a particular supplier or customer. This
is subject to per se prohibition.

Secondary boycotts occur when a group of people who may not

otherwise deal with the target organization persuade another uninvolved
(supplier) not to deal with the target organization.

 Tie-in arrangements and third line forcing – when the supply of goods or
services to a person is made provisional upon them, also purchasing additional
goods and services, either from the same supplier (tie in arrangement) or from
another specified supplier (third line forcing)

 Retail price maintenance – refers to action by suppliers, manufacturers or

wholesalers specifying a minimum price below which goods or services may not
be resold or advertised for resale.

In addition, the following are identified conducts that might restrict the freedom of
action of the parties or if it has objects or effect the prevention, distortion or restriction of
competition1:

 Bid-rigging - includes cover bidding to assist an undertaking in winning the

tender. An essential feature of the tender system is that tenderers prepare and
submit bids independently.

 Limiting or controlling production or investment – involves agreements which

limit output or control production, by fixing production levels or setting quotas, or
agreements which deal with structural overcapacity or coordinate future
investment plans.

1
ASEAN Regional Guidelines on Competition Policy

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  Abuse of a dominant position - occurs where the dominant enterprise, either
individually or together with other undertakings, exploits its dominant position in
the relevant market or excludes competitors and harms the competition process.
It is prudent to consider the actual or potential impact of the conduct on
competition, instead of treating certain conducts by dominant enterprises as
automatically abusive.

 Exploitative behaviour towards consumers, customers and/or competitors (e.g.,

excessive or unfair purchase or sales prices or other unfair trading conditions,
tying).

 Exclusionary behaviour toward competitors (e.g., predatory pricing by an

undertaking which deliberately incurs losses in the short run by setting prices so
low that it forces one or more undertakings out of the market, so as to be able to
charge higher prices in the longer run; margin squeeze).

 Discriminatory behaviour (e.g., applying dissimilar pricing or conditions to

equivalent transactions and vice-versa).

 Limiting production, markets or technical development to the prejudice of

consumers (e.g., restricting output or illegitimate refusal to supply, restricting
access to/use of/ development of a new technology).

9. What are regulatory restrictions?

Regulatory restrictions are government’s own restrictions on competitive conduct,

either through legislated regulation or direct ownership.

These restrictions can detract from overall competitiveness in the economy, in much
the same way as market failure, in the sense that they detract from the regular workings of
the market.

Regulatory restrictions may entrench a smaller number of players in a less

competitive environment. Consequences of these are higher prices, poorer quality goods
and a group of firms that have a diminished response to their market.

Regulatory restrictions in the Philippines include:

 Regulatory barriers to market entry, including licensing and franchising

agreements;

 Government monopolies, including monopolies on public utilities such as

electricity generation and supply, telephone services and the shipping industry;

 Rural marketing, especially restrictive marketing boards; and

 Other restrictions on competitive conduct.

10. What forms of regulation impact on competition?

There are two (2) forms of regulation that impact on competition directly:

 Barriers to entry are burdens or limitations forcing any firm not presently
operating in a market. They derive from:

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  Economies of scale due to market share achieved by the incumbents;

 Capital requirements (including investment in brand development through

advertising and the like);

 Cost savings accruing to existing firms from their experience and familiarity
with the particular industry;

 Monopoly access to key infrastructure; and

 Monopoly of key industry knowledge.

 Regulations that restrict competitive behavior:

 Price control; and

 Advertising restrictions

The negative impact of above-mentioned regulations is: higher prices; lower quality
goods; and less consumer choice as a result of reduced competition.

In the case of monopolies, competition in the market is prevented.

11. What is an essential facility?

Within the framework of competition policy, an essential facility is a major

infrastructure which exhibits two characteristics:

 The facility is essential to the effective operation of an economic organization;

and

 The facility exhibits natural monopoly characteristics. Ex: electricity grids, rail
infrastructure, roads, port facilities, pipelines and telecom network.

12. What is a natural monopoly?

The distinguishing feature of a natural monopoly is that a single facility can supply
the entire market demand more efficiently than two or more smaller facilities.

Typically, natural monopolies have the following features: (1) large development
and start-up costs; and (2) economies of scale, i.e., as output is increased, the average
cost per unit output declines.

Natural monopoly is an outcome of the size of the market and the type of
technology available to meet demand. It is not a market structure, rather a cost-minimizing
method of production. There are two major implications:

 An industry may consist of more than one firm even though the existing
technology would suggest that monopoly is more economically efficient.

 The existence of natural monopoly conditions in an industry may vary as

demand varies and as the prevailing technology changes.

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13. What are the main areas/concerns which competition policy and law should
address?

 preventing enterprises from entering into agreements which do not have any
beneficial features and which will restrict competition, either amongst
themselves or between them and third parties;

 controlling attempts by monopolists or dominant firms from abusing their market

position and preventing new firms from entering the market;

 ensuring that workable competition is maintained in oligopolistic industries; and

 Monitoring mergers between independent enterprises, where the effect of the

merger may result in market concentration and reduction in competition.

B. PHILIPPINE EXPERIENCE

14. Where is the Philippines now in terms of Competition Policy and Law?

In his State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July 2010, President Benigno Simeon
C. Aquino III stated:

“What we intend to achieve is simple; an economy where growth is powered

by private enterprise, but for the benefit of the greatest number of citizens; a
nation where free enterprise is harnessed for growth, in an environment that
promotes transparency, equal competition, and accountable governance.”

xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx

“… it is the government’s duty to ensure that the market is fair for all. No
monopolies, no cartels that kill competition. We need an ANTITRUST LAW that
will give life to these principles.”

On 21 July 2015, the President signed Republic Act 10667 (“Philippine

Competition Act”) providing for a national competition policy prohibiting anti-competitive
agreements, abuse of dominant position and anti-competitive mergers and acquisitions,
and establishing the Philippine Competition Commission.

15. What are the Philippines’ major competition-related laws?

The Philippines has approximately 30 competition/antitrust-related laws, leading

examples of which include the following:

 1987 Constitution - Prohibits monopolization and combination in restraint of trade

(on a rule of reason basis), but has no imposable sanctions for violation

 Revised Penal Code of the Philippines (Article 186) - Describes monopolization

and combinations in restraint of trade as acts punishable and describes penalties,
including imprisonment and fines of between P200,000.00 and P600,000.00; it is
similar in nature to Section 2 of the US Sherman Act

 Republic Act 3247 – Known as the Act to Prohibit Monopolies and Combinations
in Restraint of Trade, this law provides for treble damages for civil liabilities
arising from anti-competitive behaviour.

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  Republic Acts 165 and 166 - These are the Patent Law and Trademark Law,
respectively, and describe the appropriate civil actions which can be resorted to
and penalties imposable for breaches. (Intellectual Property Office website:
www.ipophil.gov.ph)

 Presidential Decree 49 - This is the Copyright Law and penalizes copyright

infringement. (Intellectual Property Office website: www.ipophil.gov.ph)

 Republic Act 386 - This is the Civil Code of the Philippines and stipulates the
collection of damages arising from unfair competition.

 Republic Act 7581 - The Price Act protects consumers by stipulating price
manipulation (hoarding, profiteering and cartels) as illegal for certain commodities
in cases of emergency. (Department of Trade and Industry website:
www.dti.gov.ph)

 Republic Act 7394 - The Consumer Act of the Philippines imposes penalties for
behavior such as deceptive, unfair and unconscionable sales practices in both
goods and credit transactions. (Department of Trade and Industry website:
www.dti.gov.ph)

 Philippine Corporation Code - Provides for rules and proceedings for approving
mergers, consolidations and combinations for the Securities and Exchange
Commission (Securities and Exchange Commission website: www.sec.gov.ph)

 Executive Order (EO) No. 45, series of 2011 - Designating the Department of
Justice (DOJ) as the Competition Authority. (DOJ website: www.doj.gov.ph).

16. What is the Office for Competition?

The Office for Competition (OFC) is the country’s central body on competition created
pursuant to EO No. 45 (Designating the Department of Justice as the Competition Authority)
signed on June 9, 2011. OFC is under the Office of the Secretary of Justice.

17. What are the duties and responsibilities of OFC?

 Investigate all cases involving violations of competition laws and prosecute

violators to prevent, restrain and punish monopolization, cartels and combinations
in restraint of trade;

 Enforce competition policies and laws to protect consumers from abusive,

fraudulent, or harmful corrupt business practices;

 Supervise competition in markets by ensuring that prohibitions and requirements

of competition laws are adhered to, and to this end, call on other government
agencies and/or entities for submission of reports and provision for assistance;

 Monitor and implement measures to promote transparency and accountability in

markets;

 Prepare, publish and disseminate studies and reports on competition to inform

and guide the industry and consumers; and

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  Promote international cooperation and strengthen Philippine trade relations with
other countries, economies, and institutions in trade agreements.

18. What are the OFC Working Groups (WG)?

OFC created and chairs the following Working Groups:

 Advocacy and Partnerships

 WG Co-chair: Tariff Commission (TC)

 Business and Economics

 WG Co-chair: Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

 Enforcement and Legal

 WG Co-chair: Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)

 Consumer Protection and Welfare

 WG Co-chair: Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)

 Policy and Planning

 WG Co-chair: Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS)

 Administration

19. When is National Competition Day?

President Aquino issued Proclamation No. 384 (signed on 18 May 2012) declaring
December 5 of every year as “National Competition Day.”

C. PHILIPPINE PARTICIPATION IN INTERNATIONAL FORA

The ASEAN Experts Group on Competition

20. What is the ASEAN Experts Group on Competition?

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Experts Group on Competition

(AEGC) is a formal body composed of representatives of competition authorities of all
ASEAN Member States (AMSs) nominated by their respective Senior Economic Officials
Meeting (SEOM) Leaders. The body was established by the ASEAN Economic Ministers
(AEM) in August 2007 as a regional forum to discuss and coordinate policies with the goal of
promoting a healthy competitive environment in the ASEAN region. AEGC also aims to
develop competition policy through exchange of information, networking and dialogue.

21. What are the different competition authorities in the ASEAN?

Country Competition Authority Website

Brunei Darussalam Department of Economic www.depd.gov.bn
Planning and Development-
Prime Minister’s Office
Cambodia Ministry of Commerce www.moc.gov.kh
Indonesia Commission for the http://eng.kppu.go.id
Supervision of Business
Competition (KPPU)

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 Country Competition Authority Website
LAO People’s Ministry of Industry and www.moic.gov.la/default.asp
Democratic Republic Commerce
Malaysia Malaysia Competition http://www.mycc.gov.my
Commission (MyCC)
Myanmar Ministry of National Planning
and Development
Philippines Department of Justice-Office www.doj.gov.ph
for Competition (DOJ-OFC)
Singapore Competition Commission http://www.ccs.gov.sg
Singapore
Thailand Office of Trade Competition www.dit.go.th
Commission
Vietnam Viet Nam Competition www.vca.gov.vn
Authority (VCA)

Viet Nam Competition

Council (VCC)

22. What are the AEGC publications?

 ASEAN Regional Guidelines on Competition Policy (Regional Guidelines)

 What are the Regional Guidelines?

o The Regional Guidelines serves as a non-binding general framework

guide for the AMS as they endeavoured to introduce, implement and
develop competition policy in accordance with the specific legal and
economic context of each AMS.

o It is based on country experiences and international best practices and

taking into account the varying development stages of competition policy
in AMS, the Regional Guidelines set out different policy and institutional
options that serves as a reference guide for AMS in their efforts to create
a fair competition environment.

o Launched on 24 August 2010 during the 42nd ASEAN Economic

Ministers (AEM) Meeting in Da Nang, Vietnam, the Regional Guidelines
illustrate the objectives and benefits of competition policy and provide
explanations as to the scope of competition policy, the role and
institutional structure of competition regulatory bodies, and the
competition enforcement framework. It also considers the issues of
technical assistance, capacity building and international cooperation.

o The AEGC will update the Regional Guidelines within the next five years
to reflect any changes and developments in ASEAN and in international
best practices.

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 11

  What was the role of the Tariff Commission in the drafting, preparation,
finalization and launch of the Regional Guidelines?

As Philippine AEGC representative then, the Tariff Commission was the

lead agency in the preparation of the Regional Guidelines. Collaborative help
was also given by the Bureau of Trade Regulation and Consumer Protection
of the DTI and the DOJ during the drafting, discussion and finalization of the
Regional Guidelines.

 Handbook on Competition Policy and Law in ASEAN for Business (Handbook)

 What is this Handbook?

The Handbook is for use by regional and transnational businesses

operating in the ASEAN region and is intended to reflect nationwide
Competition Policy and Law (CPL) provisions and sector specific provisions
related to CPL, inform the domestic and transnational business community an
investors on current approaches and practices relating to CPL in AMSs, as
well as raise awareness among this target group and improve compliance on
CPL issues where lacking. It was launched on 24 August 2010 during the
42nd AEM Meeting in Da Nang, Vietnam.

 What does the Handbook contain?

The Handbook provides a basic explanation of the basic principles of CPL

and covers, in relation to each AMS, the key areas of CPL that are of
relevance for businesses, such as provisions concerning: substantive issues,
(restrictive agreements, abuse of dominant position, mergers and
acquisitions), procedural issues (notification systems, enforcement
procedures, decisions) and the organization of competition authorities. It also
includes summaries of competition cases in selected AMSs.

 What was the role of the Tariff Commission in the drafting, preparation,
finalization and launch of the Handbook?

As Philippine AEGC representative then, the Tariff Commission was the

lead agency in the preparation of the Handbook.

 Regional Core Competencies (RCC) Manual

 What is this Manual?

This Manual consists of international and regional best practices on

competition policy and law with specific focus on the following areas: institutional
building; enforcement; and advocacy.

 What was the role of the Tariff Commission in the region-wide advocacy
socialization workshops?

In cooperation with the ASEAN Secretariat and with funding support from
InWent, the Tariff Commission organized the successful Philippine launch of the
AEGC-5th Forum on “Handbook on CPL in ASEAN for Business” on 12
November 2012. The forum was well attended by key government officials,
businessmen, academe, and consumer groups.

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 12

 Competition Provisions in Free Trade Areas

23. Are there competition provisions in Free Trade Areas (FTAs) that the
Philippines is a party to?

Yes, there are, namely:

 Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (PJEPA)

Chapter 12 of the PJEPA is devoted to Competition Policy. There are 3 Articles

included in Chapter 12, namely: (1) Article 135 which deals with the promotion of
competition by addressing anti-competitive activities, (2) Article 136 on Cooperation
on Promoting Competition by Addressing Anti-competitive activities, and (3) Article
137 on the non-application of Chapter 15 of the PJEPA.

The Tariff Commission was Philippine lead negotiator for the Chapter on
Competition.

 ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA)

Chapter 14 of the AANZFTA is devoted to Competition Policy. There are 4

Articles included in Chapter 14: (1) Article 1 discusses Basic Principles, (2) Article 2
is on Cooperation, (3) Article 3 deals with contact points, and (4) Article 4 is on the
non-application of Chapter 17 of the AANZFTA (Consultation and Dispute
Settlement).

The Tariff Commission was Philippine lead negotiator for the Chapter on
Competition.

 ASEAN - Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement

(AJCEPA)

Competition policy is cited in Chapter 8, Article 53 (Fields of Economic

Cooperation), where it is provided that “the Parties, on the basis of mutual benefit,
shall explore and undertake economic cooperation activities in the identified fields
under Article 53.” Competition Policy is one of the identified activities.

The Tariff Commission was Philippine lead negotiator on the area of Competition
in the AJCEPA.

International Bodies on Competition Policy and Law

24. What is the International Competition Network (ICN)?

ICN is an international network devoted exclusively to competition issues. At its

inception in 2001, it had 16 founding authorities from 14 jurisdictions. ICN operates as
follows:

 It is a voluntary organization composed of different competition authorities-

members.

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  It has no formally established headquarters, secretariat or even its own financial
funding source.
 ICN operates through an established working group network. These working
groups produce relevant work programmes and products based on a consensus
basis, made possible through the holding of various conferences (including an
annual ICN conference) and e-mail communications between the ICN members.
 The ICN working groups are: (i) Mergers; (ii) Advocacy; (iii) Capacity-building;
(iv) Regulated sectors; (v) Cartels; (vi) Telecommunications; (vii) Unilateral
Conduct; and (viii) Agency effectiveness.
 There is also an established ICN Support Program wherein ICN members can
request from other members for information and help in identifying and
familiarizing themselves with relevant ICN work programs.

25. What are the goals of ICN?

ICN seeks to achieve better competition enforcement and advocacy through:

 enhanced convergence and harmonization of competition laws and policies which

are at par to global standards, with the aim of producing and promoting an
economic development through enhanced productivity and efficiency

 To strengthen the cooperation among competition agencies, in particular, the

preferential giving of support to newly established competition authorities.

26. What is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

(OECD)?

The OECD is an influential organization with 30 Member States, comprised mostly of

the rich countries in the world. It has a Standing Committee on Competition Policy and Law,
which has its regular 30 Member countries as Members, and 5 observers, namely:
Argentina, Brazil, Israel, Lithuania and Russia.

The OECD has been regularly cooperating with a variety of Non-OECD countries to
provide capacity building. With the advent of the OECD’s Global Forum on Competition,
OECD’s cooperation activities with non-OECD members extends beyond capacity building to
include high-level policy dialogue that will build mutual understanding, identify “best
practices” and provide informal advice and feedback on the entire range of competition
issues. The Global Forum on Competition meets annually and serves a flat form for the
exchange of views and experience.

27. What is the East Asia Top Level Officials Meeting on Competition Policy?

This meeting was organized for purposes of strengthening the cooperative

relationship amongst competition authorities in East Asia. The holding of an annual high
level conference enabled the officials of competition authorities to hold face to face
discussions and frank exchange of views towards the development of a common
understanding on the importance of competition law and policy in East Asia.

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 14

 An annual meeting called “East Asia Conference on Competition Law and Policy”
was held since its inception in the year 2004 until to date. The Tariff Commission has
actively participated in all such meetings and conferences. Below is the list of top-level
meetings held from 2004 to date:

Date Venue Meeting Conference

March 2004 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 1st
May 2005 Bogor, Indonesia 1st 2nd
June 2006 Bangkok, Thailand 2nd 3rd
May 2007 Hanoi, Viet Nam 3rd 4th
April 2008 Kyoto, Japan 4th -
June 2009 Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia 5th 5th
September 2010 Seoul, Korea 6th -
September 2011 Singapore 7th 6th
May 2012 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 8th 7th
August 2013 Manila, Philippines 9th 8th

D. TC COMPETITION ADVOCACY

28. What is the mandate of the Tariff Commission on competition policy?

TC was streamlined/reorganized pursuant to EO No. 143 (signed on 21 August 1999)

entitled “Instituting Effective Operational Mechanism and Strategies in the Tariff
Commission”. The Commission, as an agency responsible for undertaking a thorough study
of the Philippine trade and tariff system, was mandated to adopt operational strategies and
activities to make it more effective in encouraging the development and growth of efficient,
self-reliant, innovative, progressive and globally competitive Philippine industries.

Section 1 of EO 143 reads, in part:

“Section 1. Roles of the Commission. In the light of a freer and more liberal
trading environment, the following functions of the Commission shall be
strengthened and emphasized:

1.1 Institutionalization and acceleration of economic reforms to raise levels of

competition, encourage economic efficiency, and improve consumer
welfare;

xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx

1.5 Reinforcement of research activities regarding competition policy and the

contestability of trade practices and activities of all other countries,
economies and institutions in the international community; and

1.6 Conduct of a continuing program of advocacy to promote new

developments in international trade and tariff policy.”

30. What is the current role of TC on competition policy?

As competition advocate, the TC accepted the invitation from DOJ-OFC to co-chair

the OFC Working Group on Advocacy and Partnerships.

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 15

29. What activities has TC undertaken following its advocacy?

 CPL Seminars/Workshops

 AEGC - 5th Forum on “Handbook on CPL in ASEAN for Business” in Edsa-

Shangrila, Manila (12 November 2012)

 AEGC 2nd Regional Guidelines Workshop on Competition Policy and Law at

Intercontinental Hotel, Makati City (29-30 September 2009)

 Seminar on “Improving Trade Policy in the Philippines: An Assessment of the

Economy wide Impact of Philippine Tariff Changes in the Early 2000s” at
Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Makati City (24 August 2006)

 1st Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Training Course on

Competition Policy for APEC Member Economies at Mandarin Oriental,
Manila (2-4 August 2005)
 TC-Japan Fair Trade Commission Seminar/Workshop on Competition Policy
at TC Conference Room (17 November 2003)

 Seminar/Workshop on the “Study on a Comprehensive and Integrated Draft

Legislation on Competition Policy and Law” held in Discovery Suites, Pasig
City (13-14 August 2001)

 Seminars/Roundtable discussions by the Curtin Consultancy Services on “A

Policy Framework for Competition Policy in the Philippines” in Manila (20-23
April 1999)

 CPL-Related Studies/Publications

 “An Assessment of the Economy Wide Impact of Philippine Tariff Changes in

the Early 2000s (March 2006)” - a study undertaken with the Philippine Tariff
Commission funded by the Australian Agency for International Development
(AusAid) under the Public Sector Linkages Program 2004-05 Round 1 –
“Improving Trade Policy in the Philippines: An Assessment of the
Economywide Impact of the Tariff Reforms and Implementation of Safeguard
Measures under the WTO”
By:
U-Primo E. Rodriguez (Department of Economics, University of the
Philippines, Los Banos, Laguna)
Helen Cabalu (John Curtin Institute of Public Policy, Curtin University of
Technology, Perth, Western Australia)

 Issues in the Implementation of Competition Policy in the Philippines (August

2001) - a study undertaken for the Philippine Tariff Commission, funded by
AusAid through the Philippines-Australia Governance Facility (PAGF)
By:
Helen Cabalu, Noelle Doss, Peter Kenyon, Paul Koshy, Vicar Valencia,
Nick Wills-Johnson (The Institute for Research into International
Competitiveness)
Stephanie Fryer-Smith (School of Business Law, Curtin Business School,
Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia)
Emmanuel A. Cruz (Philippine Tariff Commission)

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 16

  TARFCOM: A CGE Model of the Philippines - Quantifying the Impact of
Competition Policy on the Philippine Economy (August 2001) - a study
undertaken for the Philippine Tariff Commission, funded by AusAid under the
PAGF
By:
Mark Horridge (Centre of Policy Studies, Monash University, Melbourne,
Australia)
James Giesecke (Centre for Regional Economic Analysis, University of
Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania)
Helen Cabalu (Institute for Research into International Competitiveness,
Curtin Business School, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western
Australia)
Marilou P. Mendoza (Philippine Tariff Commission)
U-Primo Rodriguez (Department of Economics, University of the
Philippines, Los Banos, Laguna)

 A User’s Guide to the TARFCOM Model (October 2005) - shows how to

conduct experiments using TARFCOM and can illustrate how tariff changes
can be used to achieve selected policy targets.
By:
U-Primo Rodriguez (Department of Economics, University of the
Philippines, Los Banos, Laguna)
Helen Cabalu (Institute for Research into International Competitiveness,
Curtin Business School, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western
Australia)

 Improving Trade Policy in the Philippines: An Assessment of the Economy -

wide Impact of the Tariff Reform Program and the Implementation of the WTO
Safeguard Measures" - a research study jointly undertaken by TC and John
Curtin Institute of Public Policy of the Curtin University of Technology,
Western Australia under the auspices of AusAid

 A Policy Framework for Competition Policy in the Philippines (March 1999) - a

study undertaken for the Philippine Tariff Commission, funded by the United
Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and organized through Curtin
Consultancy Services.
By:
Helen Cabalu, Noelle Doss, Ian Firns, Therese Jefferson, Peter Kenyon,
Paul Koshy, Lee Kian Lim (The Institute for Research into International
Competitiveness, Kevin Brown School of Business Law, Curtin Business
School, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia

 Competition Policy for the Philippines - a pamphlet prepared jointly by the

Philippine Tariff Commission, and the Institute for Research into International
Competitiveness, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia.
The project was funded by AUSAid through the PAGF.

 A Primer on Developments in Tariff and Trade Policy (2013 edition) – a

publication by the Tariff Commission which contains a chapter on competition
policy

Date of Last Revision: January 2016 Page 17