China: Closed consultation for Amendment of Anti-Unfair Competition Law including unilateral conduct regulation

On 22 December 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation closed the consultation for the draft amendment of the Anti-Unfair Competition Law, which includes unilateral conduct regulation. The draft includes new unfair competition rules applicable to the digital economy sector, and will prevent operators from using data, algorithms, technology or any related advantages to to engage in unfair business practices. In particular, new unfair business practices are regulated in the draft, including various practices which systematically disadvantage SMEs, algorithm-based price discrimination, and unfair competition in data acquisition and use. The draft also includes updated fines for companies breaching certain provisions of the law, which range from 1% to 5% of annual revenue, and fines for responsible executives ranging from RMB 100.000 (USD 14.000) to RMB 1 million.