Law:

Section:

Competition Ordinance (LII of 2007)---Ss. 2(1) (e) (P), 3, 37 & 38---Abuse of dominant position---Refusal of deal, conditions for---Imposition of penalty---Pakistan Steel Mills was a body corporate in business of producing and supplying steel products; it having 100% share in relevant market, had complete dominance in the low-carbon steel billet market that entitled the alleged abuse that transpired and could have permitted it to refuse to supply certain of its customers and not others---Commission took suo motu notice of news items appearing in the media relating to the shortage in the supply of steel billets by the Mills to all, but one downstream buyer---Another association also alleged gross malpractice of steel billets by the management of Mills---Commission appointed an Inquiry Officer, who in his report, stated that allegation against the Mills, was true---Show-cause-notice was issued to the Mills, reply to which was not satisfactory---Refusal to supply low-carbon steel had been alleged against the Mills---Terms "refused to deal" was used to describe a situation in which one undertaking refused to sell another undertaking, was willing to sell only at a price that was considered "too high" or was willing to sell only under conditions that were deemed unacceptable, thereby qualifying as an abuse of undertaking's dominant position-"Refusal to deal" could occur either in vertical relations, where an undertaking refused to deal with or supply its product to its competitors---Refusal to deal, could be unilateral or concerted---In the present case, refusal to deal occurred in vertical relation and involved the unilateral refusal by the Mills to supply the downstream purchaser---Additionally the refusal which was unilaterally, did not involve any concerted action between suppliers---Mills was the only supplier of the refused product---Conditions which were typically included to make a finding of refusal to deal, were that the refusing firm must have a dominant position in the market of the product or service, it was refusing; that the product or service that was being refused, must be objectively indispensable input, with no actual or potential substitutes;…

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