Page 13 - HW FEBRUARY 2022

THE WEEK BEFORE Christmas, the Commerce Commission released the Preliminary Issues Paper covering the proposed scope for its market study into residential building supplies.
Feedback closed on 4 February, which will have meant a busy holiday period for those who wished to have input early on into the study.
The study is to look into “any factors that may affect competition for the supply or acquisition of key building supplies used to build the major components of residential buildings.
“The major components of residential buildings are, for the purposes of this study, the foundation, flooring, roof, walls (structural and non-structural, interior and exterior) and insulation.”
The study will look at the building products industry’s structure, competition for key building supplies, pricing practices or acquisition requirements that impact on competition, anything preventing the entry or expansion of new or innovative building supplies (specifically such as “green” building supplies or “novel prefabricated products”), the “prevalence and impacts
of vertically integrated businesses which operate at several levels in the supply chain”, rebates and loyalty schemes,
any cartel-type conduct that “suggests competitors may be accommodating one another in a way that impacts competition between them”.
The study will also look at regulatory and standards systems as apply to building product quality assurance and BC compliance and consenting; and “the decision-making behaviours of the market participants who are involved in
or influence purchasing decisions for key building supplies.”
The Commerce Commission says it expects to release a draft report for consultation around July 2022 and its final report by 6 December 2022.
The residential building supplies study will be the Commission’s third market study after completing a first market study, into retail fuels, in December 2019 and a second ongoing study into the retail grocery sector.
www.comcom.govt.nz
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FEBRUARY 2022 | NZHJ 11