Auto parts supplier fined $4.5 million

A Japanese bearings manufacturer, NSK Ltd., has pleaded guilty to two counts of bid-rigging and was fined $4.5 million for its participation in an international bid-rigging cartel (see Competition Bureau press release). NSK Ltd. secretly conspired with another Japanese competitor, JTEKT Corporation, to submit bids or tenders in response to requests for quotations to supply Toyota Manufacturing Canada Inc. JTEKT pleaded guilty to the charges in August, 2013. (See Litigator Article)

As is often the case with international cartels, the Bureau’s investigation was initiated by way of its Immunity Program. The investigation was further benefitted by the cooperation of other companies under the Bureau’s Leniency Program.

The Bureau has stated that this investigation is part of a large international cartel investigation relating to the supply of motor vehicle components.