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Mexico's Lower House Approves Antitrust Bill
 Miguel Angel Gutierrez - Reuters
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May 01, 2010
Mexico City - Mexico's lower house of Congress approved a bill late this week to increase fines against companies breaking antitrust laws in an attempt to loosen the grip a handful of companies hold on key industries.
The bill, which now moves to the Senate, would allow fines of up to 10 percent of a company's earnings in Mexico if it is found violating competition laws.
The reform is being pushed by Mexican President Felipe Calderon who wants to stimulate economic growth by opening up the telecommunications, cement and broadcasting sectors to more competition.
"The proposed law ... would raise the fines to international standards," said Ildefonso Guajardo, the head of the lower house's economy committee and a lawmaker from the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI.
Lawmakers voted 386-15 to back the bill, which also expands powers for Mexico's regulator and calls for jail terms for executives at companies found to be breaking competition laws.
It was not immediately clear when the Senate might take up the bill.
Billionaire Carlos Slim's America Movil and Telmex telephone companies heavily dominate Mexico's telecommunications sector, and regulators have struggled to make it easier for smaller rivals to compete with them.
Media powerhouse Televisa holds more than 70 percent of the television broadcasting market.
Lawmakers strengthened Mexico's antitrust law in 2006, but left regulators with little power and resources compared to watchdogs in many developed countries.
(Writing by Kevin Gray; editing by Mohammad Zargham)
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