【新唐人2013年08月12日訊】最近，中共國家發改委對6家國外奶粉企業，開出高達6.7億的反壟斷罰單，這是繼今年一月，當局首次對南韓三星等6家外資企業進行反壟斷處罰後，對外資企業的又一次開炮。那麼中共的這些反壟斷舉動，是在真正學習西方國家爲保護消費者的利益而執行的反壟斷法，還是另有圖謀呢？請看專家分析。
近日，中共國家發改委對6家國外奶粉企業，開出高達6.7億元的反壟斷罰單，這是中共歷史上對境外企業開出的最高罰單，其中包括合生元，美讚臣，多美滋、雅培、富仕蘭、恆天然乳業公司。中共還宣稱，是這些企業違反了大陸《反壟斷法》的規定，存在價格壟斷和價格操縱，處罰額度爲上一年銷售額的1%-10%。
大陸企業觀察員何軍樵：「如果中華人民共和國政府真正要執行反壟斷法的話，它應該對中國這麼多的壟斷的國企和央企來執行這樣的法律，而不只是針對幾家涉外企業，奶粉企業開一個天價的罰單，我們都知道中國的奶粉一直有問題。」
那麼，當局對外企強勢開砲，動機是甚麼呢？
大陸企業觀察員何軍樵指出，中國人喝水，用電，開車及燒油等等攸關民生的產品，都是世界上最貴的，而這些命脈企業恰恰都是國營壟斷企業。
臺大經濟系教授 張清溪：「國外的企業不管怎樣，特別是奶業，一定比中國的要守法，它對它們去開罰單，第一個是想做給中國人看，第二個我覺得，在國內廠商的壓力下，他要對外國廠商動刀，來保護國內廠商的利益。」
一段時間以來，北京當局對外國企業進行嚴厲審查的事件頻頻發生。今年3月份，中共喉舌指控蘋果公司「貪婪 」和無比傲慢」，指控大衆汽車的變速箱有問題，導致「大衆」在中國被召回38萬輛車。新年伊始，又對三星等6家電子生產商執行了1.44億反壟斷罰款。
從去年9月9號開始，大批受害臺商每天定點在臺北車站遊行抗議，控訴他們遭到中共迫害，血本無歸，家破人亡的血淚史。台灣陸委會表示，臺商在中國主要是受到刑事迫害，危及到他們的人身財產安全。
張清溪：「招商引資，招外國人企業來，開始還會受到優惠，你做成功了，它們就想要接收你的企業，甚至是用搶奪的方式，我覺得有各種原因，社會道德敗壞，主要是官方的權力沒有受到節制。」
從2011年開始，由於人力成本上升、外資稅收優惠不再、人民幣不斷升值等原因，外資企業一波接一波撤離中國。
截至今年6月5號的五個交易日內，有8億3400萬美元撤出中國股市，創下2008年1月金融危機爆發以來的最大外資流出規模。外界觀察，外資的「中國夢」開始破碎。
美國南卡羅萊納大學艾肯商學院教授 謝田：「對中共這樣一個極度殘害人權，不能實行法治的這樣一個政權，你跟它打交道，做生意，你可能獲利一時，終究會嚐到苦頭，現在西方公司現在真正開始嚐到苦頭了。
不過，據中共喉舌的報導，受到處罰的6家公司中，包括美讚臣在內的3家公司已經表示，會繳納中共當局處以的罰款，其中恆天然公司說，將完全配合併接受決定。
謝田：「這實際上是很奇怪，這些公司包括美國的一家公司，一般來說，不會輕易的接受政府的行政罰款，除非政府拿出證據，現在沒看到中共政府拿出確鑿的證據，罰款的實質和中國奶粉企業的醜聞有關係，這些企業又害怕中共報復，它們當然可能是出於自保的手段。」
美國南卡羅萊納大學艾肯商學院教授謝田認爲，中共可能企圖通過對這些公司的處罰，轉移視綫，給國內民衆一種中共在爲民謀福利的錯覺，從而忽略了實際存在的問題。
採訪編輯/劉惠 後製/葛雷
Why is the CCP Imposing Huge Fines on Foreign Companies?
Recently, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) authorities
fined six foreign infant formula companies nearly 670 million
yuan ($109 million) in total for anti-competitive behavior.
This marks another attack against foreign companies
by the CCP government,
following its fines against Samsung and other five
foreign companies for the same reason this January.
In doing this, does the CCP simply intend to protect
the interests of consumers by enforcing anti-monopoly laws
as is usually done in western countries,
or there are other motives behind the move?
Experts will share their analysis below.
Days ago, the CCP’s National Development and
Reform Commission (NDRC) imposed a huge anti-trust fine of
670 million yuan ($109 million)
to six foreign infant formula companies.
This is the largest fine the CCP has ever issued
against foreign companies.
The companies subject to the fine are Biostime, Abbott,
Mead Johnson, Dumex, Friesland Campina and Fonterra.
The CCP officially announced that those companies
had violated its anti-monopoly law with anti-competitive behavior and price fixing;
therefore they were fined 1% to 10% of
their sales amount in the past year.
He Junqiao, Chinese business observer: “If China’s (the CCP’s)
government truly wants to enforce the anti-monopoly law,
it should do the same to all those state-owned companies,
instead of solely imposing a huge fine on several foreign infant formula companies.
As we all know, there exist serious quality problems with
China’s companies producing infant milk powder.”
If this argument is correct, then what really motivates
the CCP to aggressively fine those foreign companies?
He Junqiao says that Chinese people have to pay nearly the
highest prices in the world for the many everyday essentials,
including drinking water, electricity, oil, and so on.
All these life-essential industries are precisely
under the monopoly of state-owned enterprises.
Zhang Qingxi, economics professor at Taiwan University:
“In any case, foreign companies, especially milk producers,
definitely abide by the law better than their Chinese peers.
Firstly, the CCP authorities fined those companies
as a show to the Chinese to see.
Secondly, I think it is intended to protect the interests of
domestic producers by punishing foreign ones,
under the pressure from inside China.”
The CCP government has been attacking foreign companies
in various ways for some time.
This March, a party mouthpiece media accused Apple Inc.
for being “greedy and extremely arrogant”.
In the same month, its quality inspection department also
“figured out” a gearbox problem of Volkswagen,
forcing the company to recall over 380,000 vehicles in China.
Back in early January, Samsung and other five foreign
electronic companies were fined of 144 million Yuan for anti-competitive behavior.
Since Sep 9th, 2012, a large group of Taiwanese business
owners started a daily protest at a regular time in front of Taipei Railway station.
They told stories of how they were persecuted by the CCP
and ended up losing all of their possessions in mainland China.
According to Taiwan’s mainland affairs council, the major
problem is the CCP’s criminal persecution against Taiwanese
business owners, threatening the safety
of both their life and property.
Zhang Qingxi: “The CCP’s approach of attracting investment
is to give some preferential treatment to you initially.
However, if you become a big success, then they will plot to
control your company, sometimes even by directly taking it.
Personally I think there are many reasons for this,
such as demoralization of the whole society.
A major problem is that there is no restriction
on the power of the authorities.”
Since 2011, foreign companies started to retreat from China
in waves due to increasing labor costs, an end to tax benefits,
and the appreciation of yuan, among other reasons.
In only five trading days ahead of Jun 5th, 2013,
about 834 billion dollars left China’s stock market.
This is the largest outflow of foreign investment for China
since the financial crisis in January, 2008.
Some outside observers comment that this indicates
an end to the “China Dream” for foreign companies.
Xie Tian, professor at Aiken Business School, University
of South Carolina: “The CCP has always been blatantly
violating human rights and never rules the country by law.
Working with such a regime, you may make profits for
a period of time, but will suffer a lot more in the end.
Now western companies start to taste the true
bitterness in China.”
The CCP’s mouthpiece media claimed that Mead Johnson
and two other companies out of the six milk powder
producers had announced that they would pay the fines.
New Zealand’s Fonterra was reported to say that it
accepts and will fully coordinate with the decision.
Xie Tian: “This is indeed a strange thing.
Among those companies there is also an American one.
In general, they shouldn't easily accept any administrative
fine without their violations being proved.
However, we haven’t seen any firm evidence shown
by the CCP government.
As the fine can be related to scandals of the
whole Chinese milk powder industry,
those companies may worry about further retaliation
from the CCP and therefore do something to protect themselves.”
Xie Tian says that the CCP may also aim at shifting
the public attention by imposing the huge fines on these companies.
The CCP might attempt to create the illusion that
the party is acting in the welfare people of the people,
so as to hide the real problems under its governance.
近日，中共國家發改委對6家國外奶粉企業，開出高達6.7億元的反壟斷罰單，這是中共歷史上對境外企業開出的最高罰單，其中包括合生元，美讚臣，多美滋、雅培、富仕蘭、恆天然乳業公司。中共還宣稱，是這些企業違反了大陸《反壟斷法》的規定，存在價格壟斷和價格操縱，處罰額度爲上一年銷售額的1%-10%。
大陸企業觀察員何軍樵：「如果中華人民共和國政府真正要執行反壟斷法的話，它應該對中國這麼多的壟斷的國企和央企來執行這樣的法律，而不只是針對幾家涉外企業，奶粉企業開一個天價的罰單，我們都知道中國的奶粉一直有問題。」
那麼，當局對外企強勢開砲，動機是甚麼呢？
大陸企業觀察員何軍樵指出，中國人喝水，用電，開車及燒油等等攸關民生的產品，都是世界上最貴的，而這些命脈企業恰恰都是國營壟斷企業。
臺大經濟系教授 張清溪：「國外的企業不管怎樣，特別是奶業，一定比中國的要守法，它對它們去開罰單，第一個是想做給中國人看，第二個我覺得，在國內廠商的壓力下，他要對外國廠商動刀，來保護國內廠商的利益。」
一段時間以來，北京當局對外國企業進行嚴厲審查的事件頻頻發生。今年3月份，中共喉舌指控蘋果公司「貪婪 」和無比傲慢」，指控大衆汽車的變速箱有問題，導致「大衆」在中國被召回38萬輛車。新年伊始，又對三星等6家電子生產商執行了1.44億反壟斷罰款。
從去年9月9號開始，大批受害臺商每天定點在臺北車站遊行抗議，控訴他們遭到中共迫害，血本無歸，家破人亡的血淚史。台灣陸委會表示，臺商在中國主要是受到刑事迫害，危及到他們的人身財產安全。
張清溪：「招商引資，招外國人企業來，開始還會受到優惠，你做成功了，它們就想要接收你的企業，甚至是用搶奪的方式，我覺得有各種原因，社會道德敗壞，主要是官方的權力沒有受到節制。」
從2011年開始，由於人力成本上升、外資稅收優惠不再、人民幣不斷升值等原因，外資企業一波接一波撤離中國。
截至今年6月5號的五個交易日內，有8億3400萬美元撤出中國股市，創下2008年1月金融危機爆發以來的最大外資流出規模。外界觀察，外資的「中國夢」開始破碎。
美國南卡羅萊納大學艾肯商學院教授 謝田：「對中共這樣一個極度殘害人權，不能實行法治的這樣一個政權，你跟它打交道，做生意，你可能獲利一時，終究會嚐到苦頭，現在西方公司現在真正開始嚐到苦頭了。
不過，據中共喉舌的報導，受到處罰的6家公司中，包括美讚臣在內的3家公司已經表示，會繳納中共當局處以的罰款，其中恆天然公司說，將完全配合併接受決定。
謝田：「這實際上是很奇怪，這些公司包括美國的一家公司，一般來說，不會輕易的接受政府的行政罰款，除非政府拿出證據，現在沒看到中共政府拿出確鑿的證據，罰款的實質和中國奶粉企業的醜聞有關係，這些企業又害怕中共報復，它們當然可能是出於自保的手段。」
美國南卡羅萊納大學艾肯商學院教授謝田認爲，中共可能企圖通過對這些公司的處罰，轉移視綫，給國內民衆一種中共在爲民謀福利的錯覺，從而忽略了實際存在的問題。
採訪編輯/劉惠 後製/葛雷
Why is the CCP Imposing Huge Fines on Foreign Companies?
Recently, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) authorities
fined six foreign infant formula companies nearly 670 million
yuan ($109 million) in total for anti-competitive behavior.
This marks another attack against foreign companies
by the CCP government,
following its fines against Samsung and other five
foreign companies for the same reason this January.
In doing this, does the CCP simply intend to protect
the interests of consumers by enforcing anti-monopoly laws
as is usually done in western countries,
or there are other motives behind the move?
Experts will share their analysis below.
Days ago, the CCP’s National Development and
Reform Commission (NDRC) imposed a huge anti-trust fine of
670 million yuan ($109 million)
to six foreign infant formula companies.
This is the largest fine the CCP has ever issued
against foreign companies.
The companies subject to the fine are Biostime, Abbott,
Mead Johnson, Dumex, Friesland Campina and Fonterra.
The CCP officially announced that those companies
had violated its anti-monopoly law with anti-competitive behavior and price fixing;
therefore they were fined 1% to 10% of
their sales amount in the past year.
He Junqiao, Chinese business observer: “If China’s (the CCP’s)
government truly wants to enforce the anti-monopoly law,
it should do the same to all those state-owned companies,
instead of solely imposing a huge fine on several foreign infant formula companies.
As we all know, there exist serious quality problems with
China’s companies producing infant milk powder.”
If this argument is correct, then what really motivates
the CCP to aggressively fine those foreign companies?
He Junqiao says that Chinese people have to pay nearly the
highest prices in the world for the many everyday essentials,
including drinking water, electricity, oil, and so on.
All these life-essential industries are precisely
under the monopoly of state-owned enterprises.
Zhang Qingxi, economics professor at Taiwan University:
“In any case, foreign companies, especially milk producers,
definitely abide by the law better than their Chinese peers.
Firstly, the CCP authorities fined those companies
as a show to the Chinese to see.
Secondly, I think it is intended to protect the interests of
domestic producers by punishing foreign ones,
under the pressure from inside China.”
The CCP government has been attacking foreign companies
in various ways for some time.
This March, a party mouthpiece media accused Apple Inc.
for being “greedy and extremely arrogant”.
In the same month, its quality inspection department also
“figured out” a gearbox problem of Volkswagen,
forcing the company to recall over 380,000 vehicles in China.
Back in early January, Samsung and other five foreign
electronic companies were fined of 144 million Yuan for anti-competitive behavior.
Since Sep 9th, 2012, a large group of Taiwanese business
owners started a daily protest at a regular time in front of Taipei Railway station.
They told stories of how they were persecuted by the CCP
and ended up losing all of their possessions in mainland China.
According to Taiwan’s mainland affairs council, the major
problem is the CCP’s criminal persecution against Taiwanese
business owners, threatening the safety
of both their life and property.
Zhang Qingxi: “The CCP’s approach of attracting investment
is to give some preferential treatment to you initially.
However, if you become a big success, then they will plot to
control your company, sometimes even by directly taking it.
Personally I think there are many reasons for this,
such as demoralization of the whole society.
A major problem is that there is no restriction
on the power of the authorities.”
Since 2011, foreign companies started to retreat from China
in waves due to increasing labor costs, an end to tax benefits,
and the appreciation of yuan, among other reasons.
In only five trading days ahead of Jun 5th, 2013,
about 834 billion dollars left China’s stock market.
This is the largest outflow of foreign investment for China
since the financial crisis in January, 2008.
Some outside observers comment that this indicates
an end to the “China Dream” for foreign companies.
Xie Tian, professor at Aiken Business School, University
of South Carolina: “The CCP has always been blatantly
violating human rights and never rules the country by law.
Working with such a regime, you may make profits for
a period of time, but will suffer a lot more in the end.
Now western companies start to taste the true
bitterness in China.”
The CCP’s mouthpiece media claimed that Mead Johnson
and two other companies out of the six milk powder
producers had announced that they would pay the fines.
New Zealand’s Fonterra was reported to say that it
accepts and will fully coordinate with the decision.
Xie Tian: “This is indeed a strange thing.
Among those companies there is also an American one.
In general, they shouldn't easily accept any administrative
fine without their violations being proved.
However, we haven’t seen any firm evidence shown
by the CCP government.
As the fine can be related to scandals of the
whole Chinese milk powder industry,
those companies may worry about further retaliation
from the CCP and therefore do something to protect themselves.”
Xie Tian says that the CCP may also aim at shifting
the public attention by imposing the huge fines on these companies.
The CCP might attempt to create the illusion that
the party is acting in the welfare people of the people,
so as to hide the real problems under its governance.
