On October 8, 2025, the National Academy for Public Administration in Belgrade hosted a seminar dedicated to pro-competitive regulation.

With Serbia’s regulatory landscape constantly evolving, the demand for clear and effective pro-competitive policies is growing. Experts from the European Union led the event, sharing insights on how to improve current regulations and develop new ones that foster market competitiveness and encourage fair competition. Key topics covered during the seminar included:

Identifying regulatory obstacles that hinder competition
Enhancing collaboration between regulatory and supervisory bodies and legislative institutions
Promoting a more competitive Serbian market through regulations that protect consumers, safeguard the market, and strengthen the economy
This event was held within the framework of the “EU Support for the Development of Serbia’s Internal Market” (EU4IM) project, which aims to reinforce Serbian institutions and harmonize domestic legislation with EU market standards. The project is being implemented by FIAP from Spain, in partnership with the Slovak Development Agency for Cooperation (AICS).

The Commission for Protection of Competition and the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policies (FIAP), a public agency of the Kingdom of Spain, have signed an agreement on the donation of advanced forensic software.
The donation was made within the framework of the project “EU Support to Serbia’s Internal Market,” funded under the European Union’s IPA III instrument. Within this initiative, FIAP (Fundación Internacional y para Iberoamérica de Administración y Políticas Públicas, F.S.P.) serves as the Commission’s main project partner.

The deployment of this forensic software will further strengthen the Commission’s operational capacity to conduct dawn raids and, consequently, to detect and substantiate infringement of competition law. This enhancement is particularly important in light of the increasingly dynamic nature of market structures and business models, many of which are transitioning into the digital domain.

The Commission continuously monitors developments in both domestic and global competition policy and remains committed to enhancing its technical resources and professional expertise. Through strategic partnerships and the adoption of state-of-the-art technologies, the Commission seeks to ensure the effective enforcement of competition rules in a rapidly evolving market environment.

We hereby inform all interested parties that, pursuant to the Decision of the City Assembly of Belgrade on the renaming of Savska Street to Bulevar Kralja Aleksandra I Karađorđevića, the new address for the submission and receipt of mail to the Commission for Protection of Competition is:

Commission for Protection of Competition
Bulevar Kralja Aleksandra I Karađorđevića No. 25/IV
11000 Belgrade

All other contact information and procedural details remain valid and unchanged.

Based on Article 47 of the Law on Protection of Competition and the Decision of the Council, the Commission conducted a sectoral analysis of the state and competitive conditions in the private healthcare services market within specific types of healthcare institutions for the period from 2019 to 2023.

The analysis aimed to examine the relationships between the key competitors in the private healthcare services market, including general hospitals and health centers, as well as the dynamics between private healthcare providers and insurance companies, through a detailed review of their contractual agreements and the regulatory framework governing the market.

The primary goal of the sectoral analysis was to assess and analyze the state of competition in the relevant market, highlighting potential issues related to the distortion or any other form of restriction of competition.

An integral part of the Report on the Sectoral Analysis of the State and Competitive Conditions in the Private Healthcare Services Market within Specific Types of Private Healthcare Institutions includes the derived conclusions and recommendations.

The Commission hereby wishes to extend its gratitude to all undertakings that provided the requested data during the analysis.

(Serbian version only)

The Regional Competition Center was established in Budapest in 2005 by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH) with the objective of strengthening expertise in competition law and policy. Through the organization of workshops and educational programs, the Center provides support to competition authorities across Eastern and Southeastern Europe, as well as Central Asia.

The Commission for Protection of Competition of the Republic of Serbia has been a permanent participant in the activities of the Center since 2007.
Since its inception, the Regional Competition Center has organized 158 events, gathering nearly 5,700 participants and more than 1,000 speakers who have contributed their expertise and insights. At present, the Center engages competition authorities from 17 countries across Southeastern Europe and Central Asia.

The conference was attended by distinguished guests, including Benoît Cœuré, President of the French Competition Authority and Chair of the OECD Competition Committee, as well as Carmine Di Noia, Director for Financial and Enterprise Affairs at the OECD. The Commission for Protection of Competition was represented by Council Member Miroslava Đošić and Senior Advisor Jelena Grahovac.

After obtaining the necessary opinions and completing the legal and technical review, the Commission for Protection of Competition has submitted to the Government of the Republic of Serbia four new regulations for adoption, addressing the exemption of agreements from prohibition:

- Proposal for a Regulation on Categories of Vertical Agreements Exempted from the Prohibition of Restrictive Agreements
- Proposal for a Regulation on Categories of Vertical Agreements in the Motor Vehicle Sector Exempted from the Prohibition of Restrictive Agreements
- Proposal for a Regulation on Categories of Technology Transfer Agreements Exempted from the Prohibition of Restrictive Agreements
- Proposal for a Regulation on Categories of Agreements in the Railway and Road Transport Sector Exempted from the Prohibition of Restrictive Agreements

The Commission for Protection of Competition will carry out a sectoral analysis of the state and conditions of competition in the pharmaceutical market for human medicine in the Republic of Serbia.

The analysis will focus on the market for pharmaceuticals used in human medicine, with particular emphasis on drugs included in the official list prescribed and dispensed at the expense of mandatory health insurance funds. Additionally, the study will address pricing mechanisms, market shares, competitive conditions, potential barriers to market entry, vertical relations between wholesalers and pharmacies, and other related aspects.

The main objective is to identify potential measures and activities that the Commission, through opinions and proposals/recommendations, will submit to the relevant authorities and market participants, with the aim of enhancing the competitive conditions in this market.

At present, questionnaires are being distributed to pharmacy establishments with multiple retail outlets to gather the data required for the analysis.

On October 10, 2024, the Commission for Protection of Competition initiated proceedings against DELHAIZE SERBIA DOO,PRIVREDNO DRUŠTVO ZA POSLOVNE USLUGE MERCATOR-S DOO BELGRADE, UNIVEREXPORT EXPORT-IMPORT DOO NOVI SAD, and PROIZVODNO I TRGOVINSKO PREDUZEĆE DIS DOO KRNJEVO, and conducted dawn raids at their premises. Dawn raids were also simultaneously conducted at the business premises of Cenoteka, as a third party. The proceedings were initiated based on the Commission’s reasonable assumption that the said retail chains committed competition infringement by entering into a restrictive agreement as defined in Article 10 of the Law on Protection of Competition.

Namely, the Commission is carrying out a Sectoral Analysis of the state and competitive conditions in the markets for certain food products within the Republic of Serbia, covering the period from 2018 to 2022. In light of certain findings that underscored the need for further in-depth analysis, the Commission expanded its examination to assess the competitive conditions in the retail market for a wider range of food products.

A comprehensive analysis was carried out by tracking selected products from the retailers currently facing proceedings. Publicly available data from financial reports released by the Serbian Business Registers Agency indicate that these retailers collectively represent more than 50% of the retail market in the Republic of Serbia.

Thus, the Commission, over several months of monitoring price movements for 35 selected products, found that the prices for the observed products were identical across the retail chains.
Subsequently, in August 2024, the Commission compared prices for 45 products among the parties involved in the proceedings, including an additional retailer.

Based on all of the conducted analyses, the Commission was able to draw the following conclusions:

• the retail market in Serbia saw a value growth in the period from April 2023 to March 2024, while simultaneously experiencing a modest decrease in volume.
• in the period from April 2023 to March 2024, the increase in retail prices was nearly twice as high as inflationary pressures.
• in the period from 2016 to 2023, a substantial increase in revenue and gross margins was observed among the market participants under review, which is further substantiated by data regarding their operating profit.
• throughout the multi-month monitoring period from April to September 2024, the regular prices of eight products (milk, yogurt, oil, flour, sugar, eggs, coffee, and bananas) among all observed retailers were found to be either identical or similar, despite differing procurement conditions.
• the value of the consumer basket containing 45 selected products shows only slight variations among the parties involved in the proceedings, while being significantly lower at the retail establishment with the least favorable procurement conditions.

Based on the comprehensive findings, the Commission reasonably inferred that the indicators observed in the retail market resulted from a lack of competitive pressure among the examined retailers, indicating that these entities may have entered into a restrictive agreement as stipulated in Article 10 of the Law. This conclusion is particularly supported by the fact that the only form of competition for the observed products is price competition, which is entirely absent under conditions of identical regular and promotional prices.

The Commission takes this opportunity to emphasize that, in its work—especially in proving tacit, prohibited agreements—it has access to various mechanisms that require a certain degree of confidentiality. Consequently, the Commission is unable to publicly announce its potential intentions concerning actions in specific cases to preserve the integrity of the proceedings. For the same reason, the Commission refrains from commenting on media appearances or statements made by individuals or organizations, whether accurate or inaccurate, to avoid sending a “signal” to market participants that could jeopardize the proceedings before the Commission.

All individuals possessing data, documents, or other relevant information that may be pertinent to establishing the factual circumstances in the aforementioned proceedings are kindly invited to submit such information to the Commission for Protection of Competition, located at 25 Savska Street, Belgrade.

Representatives of the Commission for Protection of Competition conducted a study visit to the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority (DCAA) and other institutions within the Danish public procurement system. The visit took place within the framework of the “Public Procurement Improvement Project,” which is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and organized by NALED. Alongside the representatives of the Commission, representatives from the Public Procurement Office and the project were also involved.

One of the primary objectives of the visit was to gain a deeper understanding of the possibilities and technical features of new software, as well as the methodologies employed by the Danish Competition Authority for detecting suspicious bids in public procurement procedures. The Danish Competition and Consumer Authority has created software named “Bid Viewer,” designed to identify indicators of collusion in public procurement activities. Recognizing that the software can be an effective tool for identifying suspicions of collusion in public procurement, the continuation of bilateral cooperation with the Danish Competition Authority will be pursued in this context.

During the study visit, meetings were also held with institutions within the public procurement system: The meetings included the Public Procurement Enterprise SKI, the City of Copenhagen – Department of Public Procurement (Commune of Copenhagen), the Agency for Public Finance and Management within the Ministry of Finance – Department of State Procurement Program, the Advisory Unit for State Procurement, as well as the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Denmark.

The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) of the People’s Republic of China held a National Conference on Fair Competition in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province.

Council member of the Commission for Protection of Competition, Čedomir Radojčić, addressed the attendees via video message, emphasizing the importance of collaboration between the Commission and the State Administration for Market Regulation of the People’s Republic of China. The Commission for Protection of Competition and the State Administration for Market Regulation have signed a memorandum of cooperation and fostered a long-standing partnership that is vital for advancing competition protection internationally, harmonizing the legal framework, and improving economic cooperation between China and Serbia.

The conference was opened by Luo Wen, Minister of the State Administration for Market Regulation, who highlighted in his introductory speech that the primary goal of their institution is to accelerate the establishment of a unified national market, which will be driven by the comparative development of competition principles.

The conference in Wuhan featured participants that included officials from Chinese institutions, as well as experts from various competition authorities, such as representatives from Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Russia, Brazil, Italy, Spain, the United States, and others. Additionally, representatives from international organizations, including the OECD, the EU, and BRICS, were also present.