Canada Global (Web News) Three German automakers were found to have conspired to manipulate the emissions of their diesel automobiles using software, according to South Korea’s antitrust agency, which said on Thursday that it would punish them a total of 42.3 billion won ($33.48 million).
The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) declared in a statement that Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE), BMW (BMWG.DE), Volkswagen (VOWG p.DE), and Audi were involved in conspiracy that limited customer choice and lessened competition.
According to the regulator, Mercedes-Benz received a 20.7 billion won fine, BMW received a 15.7 billion won fine, and Audi received a 6 billion won fine. Volkswagen did not receive a sanction since it did not generate revenue that was relevant to the issue, it added.
Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, and Audi could not be reached for comment right away.
Mercedes-Benz and its Korean subsidiary were penalised last year with a punishment of 20.2 billion won for deceptive advertising regarding the gas emissions of diesel passenger cars.
In 2021, the European Commission fined BMW and Volkswagen a combined 875 million euros for conspiring to limit the use of emissions-cleaning technologies they had created.
