China's And Japan's Antitrust Enforcement Agencies Warm Up To Each Other

Although China and Japan have very different histories regarding their antitrust laws, antitrust enforcement officials from the two countries have recently taken steps to open a formal dialogue. This is a welcome development for Chinese and Japanese companies, as well as for foreign companies that do business in China and Japan, and it continues the trend of increased communication, cooperation and coordination among national enforcement agencies. There remains an open question, however, as to how convergence among Asian antitrust enforcement agencies will affect possible convergence with agencies in the United States, the European Union and the rest of the world.

Japan's first anti-monopoly law has been developing for 70 years since it was adopted in 1947. Recently, the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) has been taking steps to enhance its authority and bring greater clarity to potentially anticompetitive conduct that will draw the JFTC's attention. For example,