Formulating the price law is the need to standardize the market order, protect the legitimate rights and interests of operators and consumers, promote enterprises to change their operating mechanism and enhance their activity ability. On the one hand, the vast majority of goods and services are subject to market-regulated prices, and operators set prices and protect their pricing autonomy through laws; On the other hand, the market price behavior is still very irregular, and unfair price behaviors such as price increase, price fraud and price misleading are widespread and need to be restrained by law.
Formulating the price law is the need to strengthen the government's ability to regulate prices and strengthen and improve macro-control. In order to overcome and make up for the defects and deficiencies of the market mechanism, it is necessary for the government to carry out effective macro-control and necessary moderate intervention on market prices according to law. At the same time, it is also necessary to regulate the government's own price behavior by formulating price law. Price law is applicable to price behavior in People's Republic of China (PRC).
The applicable space of price law is in People's Republic of China (PRC). This Law shall apply to the price behaviors of foreigners and foreign-invested enterprises in China. According to the relevant laws of "one country, two systems", the price law is not implemented in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
The applicable object of price law is price behavior. The price law is applicable to the price behavior of various market subjects such as government, operators and consumers. The price behavior here includes not only the operator's pricing, price adjustment, price evaluation and price verification, but also the government's price management, price supervision and inspection, as well as consumers' participation in pricing and price supervision.
The object of price behavior is price. The price method limits the range of prices to commodity prices and service prices. Commodity prices include the prices of various tangible products and intangible assets, and service prices include the costs of various paid services. Commodity prices are divided into tangible product prices and intangible asset prices according to whether goods have material forms or not. Tangible products refer to products with physical forms and material carriers, including various agricultural and sideline products, industrial means of production, consumer goods and building products. Intangible assets refer to assets that have been used for a long time without physical form, including patent rights, non-patent rights, trademark rights, land use rights, etc.
The specific scope of service price: first, various operating charges, that is, the fees charged by enterprises and institutions for providing operating services with certain places, equipment and tools for profit. Such as: post and telecommunications fees, photography, cleaning, travel, agency service fees, etc. Second, at present, the so-called institutional fees, that is, the fees charged by government-run institutions to make up or partially make up for the service costs in the process of providing public services to the society according to relevant national policies and regulations. Mainly medical care, education, consulting fees, inspection fees, etc. In addition, the current administrative fee is a special form of price. Due to the complicated reasons, the price laws and regulations set the principles, and the specific management measures shall be formulated separately by the State Council. The Price Law clearly stipulates that China's basic price system is "to implement and gradually improve the mechanism that prices are mainly formed by the market under macro-control". Market formation price is the core of the socialist market price system, which requires price to return to exchange and form through market competition. The prices of most goods and services should be determined by the competition between operators, operators and consumers, and consumers and consumers. In market competition, operators who formally enjoy pricing power are actually dominated by prices. No operator can independently and subjectively determine the market price, but can only accept the price determined by market supply and demand, and constantly adjust the direction and scale of production and operation with reference to this price, thus causing the rational flow of production factors among different departments and different commodities. The price formation mechanism of the market is an inherent automatic adjustment mechanism, which makes the price tend to be reasonable. It is this highly flexible and automatic price formation mechanism that can provide commodity operators and consumers with timely price signals that truly reflect the relationship between supply and demand, so that limited economic resources such as people, finance and materials can continuously flow to all fields of social production in an optimized way, promote the adaptation of production structure and consumption structure, and achieve the purpose of rational allocation of resources and proportional distribution of total social labor. However, the price of market formation is limited, and sometimes it is blind and lagging. Therefore, the state must carry out macro-control of prices, with the focus on controlling the overall price level, mainly by adjusting the total supply and demand. Except for a few direct management, most micro-specific prices are not directly intervened by the state, mainly through balancing macro-aggregates, regulating commodity supply and demand, cultivating and developing markets, limiting monopoly, promoting competition, and standardizing and guiding the price behavior of enterprises to influence the formation and change of prices.
In line with the transformation of China's basic price system, according to the different pricing subjects and formation methods, the price law stipulates that China implements three price formation forms: market-regulated price, government-guided price and government-set price, in which market-regulated price plays a leading role in the market price mechanism.
Market-regulated price refers to the price set by operators independently and formed through market competition. The government-guided price shall be determined by the government price department or other relevant departments, and the government pricing shall be determined by the government price department or other relevant departments according to the pricing authority and scope.
Main rights and obligations of operators
Operators should cherish the basic rights given by the price law in price activities, namely: setting prices regulated by the market; Set the price within the range stipulated by the government guidance price; Set the trial sale price of new products within the scope of government-guided prices and government-priced products; To report and accuse violations of their independent pricing rights; Put forward adjustment suggestions on government guidance price and government pricing.
Obligations and rights coexist, and operators should abide by laws and regulations in price activities; The implementation of government guidance prices and government pricing formulated according to law; Clearly marked; Implement legal price intervention measures and emergency measures; Follow the principles of fairness, legality, honesty and credit; Provide information necessary for price management, supervision and inspection to the competent price department. 1, colluding with each other, manipulating market prices, and harming the legitimate rights and interests of other operators or consumers. Competition is the essential attribute of market economy, and price competition is an important way and means for operators to participate in market competition. Manipulating the market price is an economic behavior that operators exclude or compete in ceiling price, and it is an unfair price competition behavior that directly uses the price.
2. Reduce the prices of fresh commodities, seasonal commodities, overstocked commodities and other commodities according to law, disrupt the normal production and operation order, and damage the national interests or the legitimate rights and interests of other operators. Judging whether it constitutes dumping below cost depends on the means, that is, whether its pricing is below cost. Second, look at the purpose, that is, whether to try to expand market share through the price below the cost, thus weakening or even expelling competitors. Third, look at the consequences, that is, whether it disrupts the normal production and operation order and harms the national interests or the legitimate rights and interests of other operators. Such as creating vicious low-price competition, hindering or threatening the establishment, survival and development of competitors, and causing the loss of national tax revenue.
3. Fabricating and spreading information about price increases, driving up prices and pushing up commodity prices too high. The act of driving up prices is an act of deliberately disrupting market order. Especially when the supply of commodities is in short supply, fabricating and spreading price increase information may lead to high commodity prices, market disorder, consumer panic and economic and social instability.
4, using false or misleading price means to trick consumers or other operators into trading with them. Fraud by price means is a kind of price fraud. There are mainly: false price reduction, lying about price reduction but not actually price reduction; Fuzzy pricing refers to the use of fuzzy language, words and units of measurement to express prices. It not only harms the interests of other operators and consumers, but also destroys the normal market order and causes chaos in economic life.
5. Providing the same goods or services and discriminating against other operators under the same trading conditions. Price discrimination refers to the fact that when operators provide goods or services of the same grade and quality, the recipients of the same trading conditions are in an unequal position in price. For example, enterprises A and B with the same conditions will have different prices because A is a local enterprise and B is a foreign enterprise. Price discrimination puts buyers with the same conditions in an unequal position, hinders their legitimate competition and has the harm of restricting competition.
6. Buying and selling goods or providing services by raising or lowering the level, and raising or lowering the price in disguise. Disguised price increases and disguised price reductions are both acts that harm the interests of the state and consumers. Generally, disguised price increases often occur when demand exceeds supply, such as: cutting corners, shoddy, adulterated, and short weight; Disguised price reduction generally occurs when supply exceeds demand, such as: purchasing goods, weighing scales; Sell goods, downgrade, etc.
7, in violation of laws and regulations for profiteering. The profiteering mentioned in the price law refers to the huge profits obtained in a short time through unfair price means. The profiteering behavior not only seriously deviates from the value, but also does not reflect the relationship between supply and demand, which undermines the basic laws of equal exchange and fair competition in the market economy and seriously damages the legitimate rights and interests of consumers. The profiteering behavior also provides false price signals for operators, misleads the investment direction, destroys the rational allocation of resources and distorts the industrial structure. Therefore, with the approval of 1995 the State Council, the State Planning Commission issued and implemented the Interim Provisions on Stopping Surplus Profits, and various localities have successively formulated relevant implementation rules, defining the standards for profiteering and reasonable profits.
8. Other unfair price behaviors prohibited by laws and administrative regulations. This refers to other unfair price behaviors that are not listed in the Price Law, but will occur in actual economic life. The price law embodies the protection of consumers' rights and interests from the following aspects:
1. Consumers have the right to participate in pricing. Government price departments and other relevant departments shall listen to the opinions of consumers when formulating government-guided prices and government-set prices; Ask for the opinions of consumers.
2. Consumers can make adjustment suggestions on government-guided prices and government pricing.
3. Consumers have the right to conduct social supervision over the price behaviors of the government and operators.
4. Consumers have the right to report price violations.
Operators have the obligation to provide goods and services to consumers at reasonable prices. Operators selling, buying goods and providing services shall be clearly marked, and shall not sell goods at a price higher than the marked price, and shall not charge any unspecified fees.
6. If the business operator causes consumers to pay more because of illegal price behaviors, it shall return the overpaid part, and if it causes damage, it shall be liable for compensation according to law. This Law is applicable to price behaviors that occur within the territory of People's Republic of China (PRC).
The prices mentioned in this Law include commodity prices and service prices. Commodity prices refer to the prices of various tangible products and intangible assets.
Service price refers to the charges for various paid services. The state implements and gradually improves the mechanism that prices are mainly formed by the market under macro-control. The pricing should conform to the law of value. Most goods and services are subject to market-regulated prices, and very few goods and services are subject to government-guided prices or government pricing.
Market-regulated price refers to the price set by operators independently and formed through market competition.
The term "business operators" as mentioned in this Law refers to legal persons, other organizations and individuals engaged in producing and dealing in commodities or providing paid services.
Government-guided price refers to the price set by the government price department or other relevant departments in accordance with the provisions of this law.
Government pricing refers to the price set by the competent pricing department of the government or other relevant departments in accordance with the pricing authority and scope stipulated in this Law. The State Council price department is responsible for the national price work. Other relevant departments in the State Council are responsible for the relevant price work within their respective responsibilities.
The price departments of local people's governments at or above the county level shall be responsible for the price work within their respective administrative areas. Other relevant departments of the local people's governments at or above the county level shall be responsible for the relevant price work within the scope of their respective duties. Operators enjoy the following rights in price activities:
Independently set prices regulated by the market;
(two) to set the price within the scope stipulated by the government guidance price;
(three) to set the trial sale price of new products within the scope of government-guided prices and government-priced products, except for specific products;
(four) to report and accuse violations of their independent pricing rights according to law. Operators selling, buying goods and providing services shall clearly mark the price in accordance with the provisions of the competent pricing department of the government, indicating the name, place of origin, specifications, grade, pricing unit, price or service items, charging standards and other relevant information.
Operators shall not sell goods at a price higher than the marked price, and shall not charge any unspecified fees. Operators shall not have the following unfair price behaviors:
(1) colluding with each other to manipulate market prices and harming the legitimate rights and interests of other business operators or consumers;
(2) Reducing the prices of fresh commodities, seasonal commodities and overstocked commodities according to law,
(3) fabricating and disseminating information about price increases, driving up prices, and driving up commodity prices too high;
(four) using false or misleading price means to trick consumers or other operators into trading with them;
(5) Providing the same goods or services and discriminating against other business operators on the same trading terms;
(6) buying or selling goods or providing services by raising or lowering the grade, etc., and raising or lowering the price in disguise;
(seven) profiteering in violation of laws and regulations;
(8) Other unfair price behaviors prohibited by laws and administrative regulations. The prices of the following commodities and services may be subject to government guidance or government pricing when necessary:
(a) the prices of a few commodities that have a significant impact on the development of the national economy and people's lives;
(2) The prices of commodities with scarce resources;
(three) the price of commodities operated by natural monopoly;
(4) Important public utility prices;
(5) Prices of important public services. The pricing authority and specific scope of application of government-guided prices and government pricing are based on the central and local pricing catalogues.
The central pricing catalogue shall be formulated and revised by the competent price department of the State Council, and published after being approved by the State Council.
The local pricing catalogue shall be formulated by the competent pricing departments of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government in accordance with the pricing authority and specific scope of application stipulated in the central pricing catalogue, and shall be published after being audited by the people's government at the corresponding level and reported to the competent pricing department of the State Council for examination and approval.
The people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government and the local people's governments below them shall not formulate pricing catalogues. The State Council price departments and other relevant departments shall, in accordance with the pricing authority and specific scope of application stipulated in the central pricing catalogue, formulate government-guided prices and government pricing; Government-guided prices and government pricing of important commodities and services shall be approved by the State Council in accordance with relevant regulations.
The price departments of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government and other relevant departments shall, in accordance with the pricing authority and specific scope of application stipulated in the local pricing catalogue, formulate government-guided prices and government pricing in their respective regions.
The people's governments of cities and counties may, under the authorization of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, formulate the government-guided prices and government-set prices implemented in their respective regions in accordance with the pricing authority and specific scope of application stipulated in the local pricing catalogue. Government price departments and other relevant departments shall, when formulating government-guided prices and government-set prices, conduct price and cost surveys and listen to the opinions of consumers, operators and relevant parties.
When the competent price department of the government investigates the government-guided price, the price and cost set by the government, the relevant units shall truthfully reflect the situation and provide the necessary account books, documents and other materials. The specific scope of application and price level of government-guided prices and government pricing shall be adjusted in a timely manner according to the economic operation and the prescribed pricing authority and procedures.
Consumers and business operators can make adjustment suggestions on government-guided prices and government pricing. When the prices of important commodities and services have risen or are likely to rise significantly, the people's governments of the State Council and provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government can take intervention measures such as limiting the price difference rate or profit rate, setting price limits, implementing the price increase declaration system and the price adjustment filing system.
If the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government take the intervention measures specified in the preceding paragraph, they shall report to the State Council for the record. When conducting price supervision and inspection, the competent pricing department of the government may exercise the following functions and powers:
Inquire about the parties concerned or relevant personnel and ask them to provide certification materials and other materials related to price violations;
(2) Inquiring and copying account books, bills, vouchers, documents and other materials related to price violations, and consulting bank materials related to price violations;
(three) to inspect the property related to price violations, and to order the parties to suspend the relevant business when necessary;
(four) in the case that the evidence may be lost or difficult to obtain later, it may be registered and preserved in advance according to law, and the parties or relevant personnel may not transfer, conceal or destroy it. Consumer organizations, employee price supervision organizations, residents' committees, villagers' committees and other organizations and consumers have the right to conduct social supervision over price behavior. Government price departments should give full play to the role of the masses in price supervision.
News organizations have the right to supervise prices by public opinion. The competent price department of the government shall establish a reporting system for price violations.
Any unit or individual has the right to report price violations. The competent price department of the government shall encourage informants and be responsible for keeping secrets for informants. A business operator who commits one of the acts listed in Article 14 of this Law shall be ordered to make corrections, his illegal income shall be confiscated, and he may also be fined not more than five times his illegal income. If there is no illegal income, it shall be given a warning and may be fined; If the circumstances are serious, it shall be ordered to suspend business for rectification, or its business license shall be revoked by the administrative department for industry and commerce. Where the relevant laws provide otherwise for the punishment of the acts listed in Article 14 of this Law and the punishment organ, the provisions of the relevant laws may be followed.
If the acts listed in Items (1) and (2) of Article 14 of this Law are national, they shall be determined by the competent price department of the State Council; Belonging to provincial and sub-provincial areas, it shall be determined by the competent price departments of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government. State administrative organs shall charge fees according to law, strictly control the charging items and limit the charging scope and standards. The specific measures for the administration of fees shall be formulated separately by the State Council.
Interest rates, exchange rates, insurance rates, securities and futures prices shall be governed by relevant laws and administrative regulations, but this Law shall not apply. This Law shall come into force as of 1 May 19981day.