Competition pushes firms to improve, adapt and deliver better outcomes for consumers and society. At ICC, we work to keep competition policy practical and predictable in a rapidly evolving global economy.
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It drives businesses to innovate, improve the quality of goods and services, and keeps consumer prices fair.
When businesses undermine competition rules – through monopolies or unfair practices – antitrust policy steps in to restore the balance.
Yet antitrust policy has never stood still. It has evolved alongside shifts in the global economy such as market liberalisation, the expansion of global supply chains and the digital revolution.
Today, the climate transition, the return of industrial policy and the dominance of digital platforms are yet again raising questions for competition authorities and businesses alike.
At ICC, we work to ensure competition policy remains practical, predictable and aligned with the realities of global business today. Together with experts from more than 70 countries – including legal practitioners, economists, in-house counsel and national antitrust leaders – we bring global insights to local reform while elevating national enforcement challenges to the international stage.
Complexity of the antitrust landscape raises compliance costs. It can deter cross-border investment and hinder the collaborations needed to build resilient supply chains and tackle global challenges.
At a moment when the world needs both bold action and deeper cooperation, antitrust policy must again evolve – with clarity and purpose – to guide competition in a rapidly changing economy.
ICC Global Competition Commission
Caroline Inthavisay, Global Policy Lead – Competition
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Achieving net zero requires large-scale investment and collaboration across value chains. Businesses are ready to act – from joint R&D to green infrastructure projects. Yet several initiatives stall due to uncertainty over how antitrust law applies.
ICC analysis and case studies show companies abandoning climate partnerships out of fear of breach. This slows progress on climate action at a time when it is needed most.
Policymakers and competition authorities can help make competition policy fit for climate action by (i) providing clear, pragmatic guidance on sustainability agreements, (ii) integrating long-term environmental benefits into enforcement assessments and (iii) promoting cross-border convergence so that companies can act confidently across markets.
These changes will ensure competition frameworks don’t stand in the way of the global climate transition, instead allowing the market to accelerate deployment of low-carbon technologies and enhance resilience of supply chains.
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Industrial policy has taken on renewed prominence amid debates on strengthening specific strategic sectors, accelerating the green and digital transitions, and responding to geopolitical pressures. State interventions must be carefully designed to foster innovation and resilience without undermining competition.
Poorly targeted subsidies, localisation requirements that force companies to produce locally or ‘national champion’ strategies which prop up one big domestic company to compete internationally risk distorting markets, weakening consumer welfare and fragmenting global trade.
At ICC, we call for industrial policies that are transparent, proportionate and consistent with competition principles. This includes calling on government to (i) evaluate how major subsidy programmes affect competitiveness (ii) ensure approval or blocking of mergers (especially those tied to public interest) are transparent and (iii) ensure clear exit strategies for crisis-driven state aid. This balance will allow industrial policy objectives to be achieved while preserving open, dynamic and competitive global markets.
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Merger control – the process whereby governments review whether mergers or acquisitions would harm competition – has expanded rapidly in the past decade. This growth – while reflecting the importance of effective oversight – has also created inconsistencies, procedural burdens and excessive enforcement that strain regulators and drive-up costs for business.
Together with nearly 200 in-house counsels, practitioners and competition authorities, we set out a global blueprint for reform to ensure that new regulations balance effective competition enforcement with the need for business predictability and economic growth.
Implementing these reforms will reduce costs, enhance legal certainty and focus agency resources where competition risks truly arise.
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The rapid growth of the digital economy – spanning platforms, cloud services, app stores and now generative AI – has created unprecedented opportunities but also new competition challenges. ICC insights highlight the urgent need for greater global consistency in enforcement. Fragmented approaches risk creating legal uncertainty, stifling investment and raising compliance costs, especially for start-ups. In terms of generative AI and virtual worlds, competition law should remain focused on safeguarding markets and innovation. Broader ethical or societal issues, like AI safeguards, are better addressed through complementary instruments such as sector-specific regulation or codes of conduct.
To foster trust, innovation and growth, we call for proportionate, evidence-based enforcement, coherent global frameworks and continued dialogue between authorities and business. In doing so, we can ensure dynamic digital markets that benefit both consumers and innovators. e legal certainty and focus agency resources where competition risks truly arise.
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Tackling climate change not only requires innovation and investment but also competition frameworks that are fit for the green transition. The ICC Call to Action on Antitrust for Climate Action urges policymakers to align antitrust policy with sustainability goals to unlock responsible cooperation and accelerate real-economy impact.
We are pleased to have the opportunity to respond to the European Commission’s call for contributions with respect to the upcoming revision of Regulation 1/2003. We support the purpose of the revision to enhance ‘effective and speedy antitrust enforcement’ and aim to ‘ increase effectiveness of EU competition law enforcement, while making Europe simpler and faster, in line with the Commission’s priorities ’.
Before responding to the Commission’s detailed questionnaire, ICC wishes to emphasise that the GBER is one of the most significant instruments within the State aid legal framework; it plays a highly positive role due to its general scope. However, it has now become overly complex and increasingly difficult to use for this very reason. ICC […]
General ConsultationEvaluation Criteria – Section 2 Targeted ConsultationTopic A : Competitiveness and ResilienceTopic B : Assessing market power using structural features and other market indicatorsTopic C : Innovation and other dynamic elements in merger controlTopic D : Sustainability and clean technologiesTopic F : EfficienciesTopic G : Public policy, security and labour market consideration
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) represents global business and brings diverse perspectives on digital regulation. The following responses to the European Commission Public Consultation on the First Review of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) reflect the views and experiences of certain ICC members and are intended to provide constructive input to the consultation. They […]
In response to a US proposal to increase tariffs on European Union goods, ICC is calling for redoubled ongoing efforts to renew the US-EU trade relationship.
A new ICC report unveils how monopoly power can be used to accelerate climate action and tackle unsustainable practices. The report follows an analysis in 2023 which showed that competition authorities are increasingly offering business guidance on sustainability co-operation agreements. While much has been accomplished since, more remains to be done to transform competition policy from a barrier into an enabler of a sustainable economy.
More concise and user-friendly, the ICC Antitrust Compliance Toolkit has been updated to reflect the evolving landscape of antitrust risks and compliance practices over the last decade. The toolkit offers practical tools and guidance to build a credible corporate antitrust compliance programme.
Responding to the European Commission's call for contributions, ICC acknowledges the potential impact of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual worlds on competition and innovation in the digital economy and highlights the need for appropriate policy instruments to address societal and ethical concerns.
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and its national committee in Japan (ICC Japan) wish to thank the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) for the opportunity to contribute comments and suggestions on the JFTC’s revised Guidelines Concerning the Activities of Enterprises, etc. Towards the Realization of a Green Society Under the Antimonopoly Act (Guidelines). The submission is made by ICC and ICC Japan as a response to the JFTC public consultation launched in February 2024.
More concise and user-friendly, the ICC Antitrust Compliance Toolkit has been updated to reflect the evolving landscape of antitrust risks and compliance practices over the last decade.
In response to changes in the international antitrust regulatory environment, our Compendium of Antitrust Damages Actions aims to provide guidance on antitrust litigation practices in an array of key jurisdictions and to raise awareness on the trends that are evolving across borders.
This is the third release of the ICC Task Force on Cartels and Leniency and the sixth publication “designed by business for business” of the ICC Commission on Competition.
To enhance compliance and proper enforcement of merger control regulations, ICC proposes recommendations and underscores the importance of companies, lawyers and antitrust agencies working side by side to pursue shared goals.
