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UK: With pricing settlement reached, OFT closes furniture probe

By  |  March 23, 2014

The UK’s Office of Fair Trading has concluded its investigation into five carpet and furniture retailers after the parties reached an agreement on pricing strategies, say reports.

The companies – SCS, Carpetright, Dreams, Furniture Village and Harveys/Bensons for Beds – have reportedly agreed to change reference pricing policies; stores use reference prices to entice shoppers by promoting a lower price than rivals’ older prices.

The OFT first cracked down on the companies in August last year as the regulator looked to stop anticompetitive pricing strategies by the firms. At that time, the OFT said the firms in question artificially inflated reference prices to promote discounts that were not genuine, reports say.

Full Content: Reuters

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