South Korea Fines Four Starch Manufacturers 747.5 Billion Won for 7-Year Price-Fixing Scheme on July 7

According to South Korea's Fair Trade Commission, on July 7, Daesang, Sajocho CPK, Samyang Foods, and CJ제일제당 were fined a combined 747.578 billion won—the largest penalty in the agency's cartel enforcement history—for price-fixing over 7 years and 5 months. The FTC determined related sales revenue at 6.05 trillion won and applied a 15% surcharge rate.

The four firms, which control 95.7% of South Korea's starch market, coordinated price increases and decreases across 13 separate occasions. During the Russia-Ukraine war and pandemic, the manufacturers passed input cost pressures onto buyers, with selling prices rising as much as 73% compared to May 2018 when collusion began. The firms coordinated price hikes when corn costs rose and minimized reductions when prices fell, protecting profit margins while pressuring distributors and smaller customers to absorb losses.