German authority calls for stricter regulation of oil price setting over possible manipulation

Germany's Federal Cartel Office yesterday called for stricter regulation of price assessments on the oil market. Price-setting is based on limited data, according to the findings of an investigation, making it vulnerable to manipulation, the authority said in a press release.

Price assessments are usually linked to wholesale purchase contracts and can indirectly affect retail prices. They are provided by price reporting agencies based on reported transactions, Reuters noted.

However, the antitrust authority's investigation found that in some cases a small number of market participants dominate data reporting, raising concerns about possible price manipulation.

“In addition to the risk of collusion, price assessment systems in their current form also create incentives and opportunities for companies to unilaterally influence or manipulate price assessments to their own advantage,” the authority said in a several-page summary of its findings.

Germany's Federal Cartel Office launched an investigation into the domestic refining market and wholesale fuel trade in 2022 in response to price developments following the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.