Retail pricing, merger reforms and competition challenges will be the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) priorities for the fiscal year 2025/26.
ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb outlined the agency’s commitment during an event hosted by the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia in Sydney on 20 February 2025.
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The ACCC will carry out focused investigations and enforcement actions to tackle issues related to competition and consumer interests within the supermarket and retail sectors.
This is in response to rising living costs and competitive pressures within the grocery, retail and essential services sectors.
The efforts aim to address consumer grievances and foster fair trading practices, particularly regarding misleading pricing strategies such as deceptive surcharging.
Cass-Gottlieb stated: “The ACCC‘s complementary mandates support the community to participate with trust and confidence in commercial life and promote the proper functioning of Australian markets. We will continue to pursue our priorities through strong enforcement action, education to foster compliance, and advocacy for reform.”
The ACCC also intends to scrutinise firms wielding significant market power that may negatively affect small businesses or lead to inflated consumer prices.
The watchdog will maintain its dedication to spurring competition in vital services such as telecommunications, electricity and gas.
With the advent of new merger legislation, voluntary merger notifications are set to commence on 1 July 2025, preceding the full implementation of the new framework on 1 January 2026.
“We acknowledge the challenges navigating this period and are committed to working with the community during the transition. Successfully and efficiently implementing the reform to the merger regime, promoting compliance with the new regime and taking enforcement action, where necessary, will be a significant focus for us in the coming year,” Cass-Gottlieb remarked.
The chair gave assurances that ACCC will persist in addressing product safety concerns and fair trading issues within the digital economy. This includes combating misleading advertising tactics prevalent in influencer marketing, online reviews and in-app purchases, and tackling unsafe consumer goods.
The agency will also target unfair online sales practices such as subscription traps while promoting informed consumer choice.
Environmental claims and sustainability will remain under scrutiny with an added emphasis on combating greenwashing.
Cass-Gottlieb concluded: “In the year ahead, as we progress the priorities I have outlined today, we will continue to use our full range of tools and powers available under Australia’s Competition and Consumer Act and the Australian Consumer Law, and to exercise our enforcement powers independently, in the public interest and with integrity and professionalism.”
In September 2024, the ACCC released an interim report revealing that many Australians have lost trust in the country’s two supermarket giants, Coles and Woolworths.
