Section 34 prohibits agreements between (competing) organizations; decisions of associations of organizations; and concerted practices, which have as their object or effect the appreciable prevention, restriction or distortion of competition within Singapore, unless they are excluded or exempted. 

Examples of agreements that have an appreciable adverse effect on competition are:

·        Fixing prices;

·        Bid rigging; (collusive tendering)

·        Sharing markets; and

·        Limiting or controlling production of investment

Agreements of the following types may have an appreciable adverse effect on competition, depending on the facts and circumstances of each case:

·        Fixing trading conditions;

·        Joint purchasing or selling;

·        Sharing business information;

·        Exchanging price information;

·        Exchanging non-price information;

·        Restricting advertising; and

·        Setting technical or design standards.

Vertical agreements are excluded from the section 34 prohibition. These are agreements relating to the purchase, sale or resale of certain products between 2 or more parties, each of which operates at a different level of the production or distribution chain, for example, manufacturer and retailer or wholesaler and retailer.

Agreements are also excluded if they have an overall net economic benefit, as discussed in Annex C of the CCS Guidelines on the Section 34 Prohibition.

For more information on section 34 prohibitions, and what may constitute a breach of this prohibition, please refer to the CCS Guidelines on the Section 34 Prohibition.

Please access "Introduction to Complaints" for more information on how to lodge a complaint.