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South Korean prosecutors on Monday charged four major domestic oil refineries with violating the Fair Trade Act, accusing them of colluding to raise domestic fuel prices in the wake of the Middle East conflict.
According to Yonhap News, the four companies that violated the country’s fair trade law are HD Hyundai Oil Bank, SK Energy, GS Caltex, and S-Oil.
HD Hyundai Oil Bank and SK Energy colluded to sell oil worth 14.2 trillion won ($9.2 billion), Yonhap News reported, citing prosecutors. Considering GS Caltex and S-Oil, which allegedly imitated these prices, the total anticompetitive impact amounts to approximately 26 trillion won, the report said.
According to prosecutors, the investigation was launched after domestic crude oil prices skyrocketed due to the conflict between the United States and Iran, and it was determined that collusion between executives of two price-setting companies over the timing and scale of price increases was the main factor.
Prosecutors said the collusion was not an isolated incident, but a long-standing systematic practice that came to light during a time of global crisis.
In March, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung warned on the X program that oil refiners and companies involved in price fixing would be held accountable and vowed to take all legal measures against unethical business practices.
Stock prices for oil refiners and their owners remained high. S Oil rose 6.08%, SK Energy’s parent company SK Innovation rose 1.58%, HD Hyundai rose 1.21% and GS Holdings, which jointly controls Chevron and oil refiner GS Caltex through its energy division, rose 6.99%.
S Oil declined to comment. Hyundai Oil Bank, SK Energy and GS Caltex could not immediately be reached for comment.
