C-store operators are calling on competition bosses for a full inquiry into the major supermarket chains’ dealings in their sector.
The Office of Fair Trading has announced it is set to re-examine the issue, ahead of a hearig at the Competition Appeals Tribunal this Tuesday.
The Association of Convenience Stores seized on Friday's admission by the Office of Fair Trading that its decision, in August, to refuse to refer to the Competition Commission its complaint about supermarkets' behaviour, was based on “insufficient reasoning”.
Despite the admission, the ACS is to tell the tribunal that the OFT’s offer is not good enough - it is looking for a full-scale market review by the Competition Commission.
The news storm clouds could be gathering over market leader Tesco, which accounts for 30 per cent of the British grocery market and £1 of every £7 spent by consumers in the country.
The Department of Trade and Industry has also mooted that it will ask for a new review of the competitiveness of the supermarket business.
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