Review № 15 of Chinese Antitrust News from the Experts of the BRICS Competition Centre
- SAMR steps up crackdown on abuse of administrative power to restrict competition
- Chinese taxi service Didi Chuxing and global hotel chain Hilton announce partnership
- Chinese authorities tighten crackdown on illegal online financial information
- Chinese startup Pony.ai to launch driverless taxis in UAE
- China hosts antitrust expert group meeting
- Chinese regulator imposes $611,000 fine for obstructing antitrust investigation
- Hong Kong sees first criminal prosecution for refusing to appear at hearing on competition law violation
- Chinese regulator tightens controls over online video content
- SAMR holds training course on fair competition oversight
- Trump administration tightens visa policy for Chinese students
SAMR steps up crackdown on abuse of administrative power to restrict competition
The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) has released a draft of the revised Regulations on the Prevention of Abuse of Administrative Power to Restrict Competition. The new rules specify the forms of violations, including discriminatory measures against products from other regions, restrictions on participation in tenders, and forcing companies to take certain actions.
Particular attention is paid to the coordination with the "Rules for Reviewing Whether Legal Provisions Obstruct Fair Competition". If a unit is suspected of abusing administrative power in drafting regulations that exclude or restrict competition and fails to conduct review in accordance with the above-mentioned rules during the drafting process, the anti-monopoly authority must initiate proceedings.
The amendments are intended to strengthen the unified national market, eliminate local protectionism and administrative barriers. The current 2023 version of the rules will be repealed after the new rules come into effect.
Source: Weixin
Chinese taxi service Didi Chuxing and global hotel chain Hilton announce partnership
Chinese taxi service Didi Chuxing and international hotel chain Hilton have announced a strategic partnership, creating a joint loyalty program for customers.
Members of the Didi loyalty program will receive a corresponding status in Hilton Honors depending on their level and will be able to enjoy benefits such as room upgrades, free breakfast and late check-out. Conversely, Hilton customers will have access to Didi's premium services: fast taxi call, free car cancellation and access to airport lounges.
Thus, Didi and Hilton have combined transportation and accommodation into a single system to improve the quality of customer service during business and leisure trips.
Source: Xinhua
Chinese authorities tighten crackdown on illegal online financial information
On May 24, 2025, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) and financial regulators announced the blocking of a number of accounts and websites that were spreading false information about capital markets, illegally promoting stock recommendations, and creating a stir around virtual currency transactions.
The offenders included accounts on popular platforms including Weibo, Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok), WeChat, and Baidu. The blocked websites included pkex, weex, and htx, which provided access to overseas platforms for virtual currency transactions.
The CAC urged users to exercise caution, verify information, and avoid engaging in dubious financial transactions.
Source: CAC
Chinese startup Pony.ai to launch driverless taxis in UAE
Chinese self-driving car startup Pony.ai has announced a strategic partnership with Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RDTA). The agreement will see the introduction of robotaxis in the emirate, a major step in the company’s strategy to expand overseas.
Driver-controlled robotaxis are scheduled to begin trials in 2025, with fully autonomous rides expected to begin in 2026. In the long term, the company plans to integrate self-driving taxis into Dubai’s transportation network, including metro, trams, and waterways, to reduce its carbon footprint and improve the city’s transportation infrastructure.
To date, Pony.ai has permits to test robotaxis in the US, China, South Korea, and Luxembourg, and has launched commercial, fully self-driving taxi services in Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen.
Source: China Daily
China hosts antitrust expert group meeting
On May 21, a plenary session of the expert advisory group of the Anti-Monopoly and Unfair Competition Committee of the State Council of the People's Republic of China was held in Beijing. Meng Yang, deputy director of the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), delivered a speech at the event. The participants discussed key tasks, including accelerating the creation of a single market, combating domestic “irrational” competition (“neijuan”), and strengthening supervision of compliance with antimonopoly laws.
Source: SAMR
Chinese regulator imposes $611,000 fine for obstructing antitrust investigation
Recently, the Jiangsu Provincial Market Regulatory Authority fined Sichuan XieLi Pharmaceutical Co. and six employees, three of whom were employees of its subsidiary Sichuan Difute Pharmaceutical, for obstructing an antitrust investigation. The fines totaled about $611,000.
The investigation found that Sichuan XieLi Pharmaceutical monopolized the supply of a domestically produced drug raw material, worsening the supply crisis of scarce drugs. This is the first time that China's revised antitrust law, which tightens penalties for obstructing inspections, has been applied. According to the amendments, fines are provided for refusing to hand over materials, providing false data or destroying evidence:
• for legal entities - up to 1% of revenue for the previous year
• for individuals - up to $70 thousand
Sichuan XieLi Pharmaceutical was fined $388 thousand and became the company with the largest fine in published practice for such violations.
Source: Weixin
Hong Kong sees first criminal prosecution for refusing to appear at hearing on competition law violation
Hong Kong police recently brought their first criminal case for failing to appear at a hearing for anti-competitive practices without a valid excuse.
The Hong Kong Competition Commission is investigating a case of alleged collusion in the division of a wholesale fish market. The regulator requested one of the parties to the case to appear to give evidence under the Competition Act. However, he ignored the request, after which the materials were handed over to the police for criminal prosecution.
The defendant is accused of violating one of the provisions of the Competition Act, according to which failure to appear at a hearing without a valid excuse can result in a fine of up to $26,000 and imprisonment for up to one year.
The Commission emphasized that under the law it has the power to require any person to provide documents or information related to the case, summon them for questioning and conduct searches (with a court warrant). Failure to comply with the regulator's requests is considered a criminal offence and entails serious consequences.
Source: Weixin
Chinese regulator tightens controls over online video content
The Cyberspace Administration of China continues to tighten control over digital content, blocking dozens of accounts for distributing malicious content through short videos on platforms such as WeChat, Kuaishou, and Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok).
Among the main violations identified by the regulator were the publication of staged videos with elements of violence and humiliation aimed at artificially creating conflicts between different social groups. Such videos aroused public sympathy, which contributed to the growth of subscribers.
Particular attention was paid to the fight against fraudulent schemes disguised as "traditional practices". Some authors offered paid services to "get rid of problems" using pseudo-scientific methods, misleading the audience.
Accounts were blocked that published short videos that were created using AI and showed the hard life of children in mountainous and rural areas of the country. The regulator will continue to monitor platforms, paying particular attention to combating staged videos, disinformation and violations of public morality.
Source: Weixin
SAMR holds training course on fair competition oversight
The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) of the People's Republic of China held the second specialized training course on professional development in fair competition supervision. The event was attended by 68 specialists from market regulation departments at all levels - provincial, city and county. Participants studied current issues in competition law and policy, and familiarized themselves with international experience in this field. The training was held in the format of lectures by experts in the field of antitrust regulation and macroeconomic management, practical case studies and discussions.
Source: Weixin
Trump administration tightens visa policy for Chinese students
The Trump administration has announced restrictions on international students from China. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States would begin revoking visas for Chinese students, especially those studying in "critical fields." China is the second-largest student body in the United States after India. More than 270,000 Chinese students were studying in the United States in the 2023-24 academic year, about a quarter of all international students in the country. The decision comes as scrutiny of ties between American universities and China has tightened. Last week, the Department of Homeland Security accused Harvard University of "collaborating with the Chinese Communist Party," citing joint research with Chinese scientists. The department also alleged that Harvard had trained members of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, a militant group considered by the United States to be similar to the militant group. Earlier this week, Rubio announced a pause in student visa appointments while the State Department develops new rules to screen international students for social media activity.
The day before, a federal judge temporarily stayed the administration's decision to bar Harvard from accepting new international students.
President Trump has said the university's share of international students, which has been more than 25%, should be reduced to 15%. "I want to make sure that international students are people who can love our country," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
Source: AP News
