Decision No. 79/2008/QD-BTC on the management and control mechanism for gasoline prices

 Pursuant to …;

On the management and control mechanism for gasoline and fuel oil selling prices

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE

Pursuant to Decree No. 77/2003/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 2003 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 75/2008/NĐ-CP dated June 9, 2008 of the Government amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 170/2003/NĐ-CP of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Price Ordinance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 55/2007/NĐ-CP dated April 6, 2007 of the Government on gasoline and fuel oil trading;

After reaching consensus with the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

DECISION:

Article 1. Vietnamese traders (as provided for in the Commercial Law) engaged in exporting, importing, or refining gasoline and fuel oil in the domestic market (hereinafter referred to as key enterprises in gasoline and fuel oil trading) shall be regulated by market-based pricing mechanisms within their distribution systems.

Article 2. Key enterprises in gasoline and fuel oil trading shall base their specific pricing levels on import prices for each type of gasoline and fuel oil, including taxes and fees as prescribed, actual business costs, and reasonable profits for reinvestment in production and business development, following the guidelines for calculating production costs, circulation expenses, and pricing of goods and services set forth in Decree No. 116/2005/NĐ-CP dated September 15, 2005 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Competition Law and Decision No. 06/2005/QD-BTC dated January 18, 2005 of the Minister of Finance promulgating the regulations on pricing of assets, goods, and services; they shall determine retail prices suitable for each period and quality of each type of gasoline and fuel oil.

Article 3. Prior to issuing the pricing decision for gasoline and fuel oil, key enterprises in gasoline and fuel oil trading have the responsibility to register their selling prices with the Joint Ministry of Finance - Industry and Trade; thereafter, they shall organize sales according to the registered price, publicly display the registered selling price throughout their system, sell sufficient quantities, ensure correct quality to customers, and not sell at a higher price than the listed price. At the same time, they must comply with price stabilization measures as prescribed by law when the market experiences abnormal fluctuations.

In case the Joint Ministry discovers that the price registered by the enterprise is unreasonable, the Joint Ministry will implement price formation factor supervision as prescribed by the Price Ordinance and require the enterprise to sell at a reasonable price level.

Article 4. Strictly prohibited are acts of abusing market dominance positions, forming monopolistic price agreements, setting unreasonable prices to dominate the market, causing damage to the legitimate interests of other businesses, consumers, and the State's interests.

Any violations of the provisions of this Decision by key enterprises in gasoline and fuel oil trading shall be handled in accordance with Decree No. 120/2005/NĐ-CP dated September 30, 2005 of the Government stipulating the handling of violations of competition laws and Decree No. 169/2004/NĐ-CP dated September 22, 2004 of the Government on administrative penalties in the field of pricing.

Article 5. This Decision takes effect from September 16, 2008, and replaces Decision No. 1968/QD-BTC dated June 6, 2007 of the Ministry of Finance on the management and control mechanism for gasoline and fuel oil selling prices./.