New Zealand: The Commerce Commission has completed its investigation into allegations that Winstone Wallboards Limited, a subsidiary of Fletcher Building, acted anti-competitively to maintain its market position in the manufacture and supply of wallboard. Based on the evidence gathered during the investigation, the Commission does not believe that Winstone has breached the Commerce Act 1986 and it will not be taking any further action.
"We have completed a thorough investigation and there is no evidence to suggest that Winstone has breached the Commerce Act in any of these areas," said Commission Chairman Mark Berry.
The Commission's investigation was centred on three areas: Winstone's alleged exclusive agreements with merchants, the rebates Winstone pays to merchants and Winstone's alleged practice of undercutting other wallboard suppliers on jobs. The initial investigation was completed in April 2014 and followed by additional interviews and further investigation.
