Indonesia's anti-trust body fines cooking oil firms

JAKARTA, May 27 (Reuters): Indonesia's anti-monopoly agency (KPPU) ordered seven cooking oil companies on Friday to pay fines of up to $2.8 million for restricting sales amid scarce supplies last year.

KPPU launched an investigation into the conduct of cooking oil companies last year after the Indonesian government placed a temporary cap on surging retail prices of the essential product and later a three-week export ban on palm oil.

Indonesia is the world's biggest producer of palm oil.

Seven out of 27 companies investigated were found guilty of limiting distribution of their branded cooking oils while the retail price cap was in place in early 2022, said Dinni Melanie, who chaired the KPPU panel.

The seven companies include Salim Ivomas Pratama, a unit of Indonesia's largest food company Indofood Group, as well as two units of Wilmar Group.

The companies were ordered to pay fines ranging from 1 billion rupiah ($68,050.36) to 40.9 billion rupiah ($2.78 million).