Research On The Legal Regualtions Of Price Conducts

After over 30 years of market-oriented price reforming, our country has primarily formed the price system which relies mainly on market regulation with guidance price of the government subsidiary. This flexible market price formation mechanism makes the price fixing become a business conduct rather than an administrative one. Government transforms from the decision-maker of price to the principal part of price regulation.Using the legislative experience of the developed countries, our country has already established complete law system of price, which centers on"Price Act", with governmental supporting rules such as price rules, administrative charge and control rules, institutional charge and control rules, operators'price conduct rules, and price regulation and inspection rules.According to the different characters of operators, regulation on operators'price conduct can be divided into two basic categories: price regulation on operators in competitive industry and that in natural monopoly industry and public product industry. The main objects of the former regulation are conducts of dumping at a low price, price fraud and price monopoly which includes unified price controlling and controlling market price by abusing the market's dominant power. However, the latter's mainly regulates unreasonable price conduct in natural monopoly industry and that in public product industry, such as conducts of disguised rise in price, high price, overcharge, undercharge etc.According to the analysis of price violations of law previously, the limitation of law on price regulation will be explained in two aspects. First is the limitation of law on price regulation upon operators in competitive industries. Second is the limitation of law on price regulation upon operators in natural monopoly and public product industries. The main problems of the former are the imperfect system of law and incomplete execution of regulation. The main problem of the latter concentrates on asymmetry of information and price hearings'formalism.It is necessary to establish price reduction record system; set norms for fluctuation prices; adopt comprehensive responsibility system accompanied with civil responsibility, administrative responsibility and criminal responsibility; acknowledging functions of regulation subject. It is important to set up the institutions of price regulation scientifically, execute vertical management of administrative system; set up scientifically inner institution for price check, including establishing investigation center as well as arbitrative sector to regulate price monopoly and price dumping; refine, separate and integrate commodities and services that are priced by current government. Reinforce the system of regulation so as to provide scientific basis for price fixing in monopoly industry. Through establishment of sound selection of representatives for hearings, enforcement of the publicity of information and cross-examination procedure. Moreover, in view of the characteristic that more people pay their attention to the price conduct of operators in natural monopoly and public product industries, group action system should be brought into law on price regulation, which is the inevitable trend under the price regulation system of China's market economy.