COMPETITION
authorities, having accused most of SA’s car makers of anticompetitive
behaviour, should be careful not to destabilise an industry that was a
major contributor — almost 7% of gross domestic product — to the
economy.
The warning was issued by industry
body the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA
(Naamsa) in its monthly car sales commentary yesterday.
The Competition Commission, which said this week that it
had found evidence of anticompetitive behaviour by most of SA’s car
makers, said that the biggest culprit when it came to high car prices
might be the Motor Industry Development Programme (MIDP).
The programme, which is under review, affords car makers
substantial benefits by offsetting the costs of imports, and is
credited with saving the industry from collapse when it was introduced
10 years ago.
The commission is not the first to criticise the
programme — Australia threatened to challenge its compliance with
global trade rules before the World Trade Organisation last year.
The commission’s “implied criticism” of the MIDP should
be taken up with the trade and industry department and the national
treasury, said Naamsa head Nico Vermeulen.
There was a significant and growing disconnection between
industrial policy and competition policy in SA, he said. This required
“urgent attention at the highest level of government”, Vermeulen said.
Car makers have been vexed by the commission’s findings
of anticompetitive behaviour earlier this week, and by the way in which
the outcome of the investigation was communicated.
Car makers, including Volkswagen, DaimlerChrysler and
General Motors, said they could still not comment on the commission’s
findings yesterday as they had not yet seen them. BMW, among others,
described the commission’s communication of the outcome of the
investigation through a press release as disappointing.
Several car makers said the announcement was rushed so as
to afford commissioner Menzi Simelane another big notch in his belt
before his departure.
Simelane left the commission on the day of the announcement.
The commission released findings in relation to issues
such as collusion, but had yet to complete an investigation into
allegations of excessive pricing.
Simelane said on the day the announcement was made that
the commission had a lot on its plate and that he wanted to help finish
what he could. | 
