The Hong Kong Parliament issues a commencement notice for the introduction of a Competition Ordinance

Hong Kong recently commenced the final countdown towards implementing its new competition regime, many elements of which are inspired by competition rules in Western jurisdictions. On July 17, it issued a "Commencement Notice" for the introduction of a Competition Ordinance (the "Ordinance") which is scheduled to come into force in six weeks' time, on December 14, 2015. The Hong Kong Competition Commission (the "HKCC") has indicated that there will not be an additional grace period after this date. [1] Thus, businesses and trade associations have approximately six weeks to take appropriate steps to comply with the Ordinance. In the meantime, as the date for full implementation of the competition regime approaches, the HKCC will, in appropriate cases, contact businesses and other relevant