Last month, Canadian regulators began an investigation into allegations of price-fixing involving Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY), Cadbury Schweppes PLC (NYSE: CSG) Mars Inc. and Nestlé SA (VTX: NESN).
Now our own Justice Department is looking into the issue as well. Chocolatiers have been battling with surging dairy prices and there have been allegations that various firms colluded to fix prices. Ontario's Superior Court of Justice has granted search warrants for the above candy makers, but no charges have been filed.
According (subscription required) to the Wall Street Journal, "It isn't clear precisely what the Justice Department is looking into or whether the preliminary inquiry will become a formal criminal investigation. Price fixing can be a serious offense, leading to heavy fines and, in some cases, jail terms for executives."
The legal issues aside, does anyone really think that lack of access to affordable chocolate is a serious problem in the United States? Judging from The US of A's collective waistline, a little price fixing and consumer gouging could do our body mass indexes a bit of good.
Now our own Justice Department is looking into the issue as well. Chocolatiers have been battling with surging dairy prices and there have been allegations that various firms colluded to fix prices. Ontario's Superior Court of Justice has granted search warrants for the above candy makers, but no charges have been filed.
According (subscription required) to the Wall Street Journal, "It isn't clear precisely what the Justice Department is looking into or whether the preliminary inquiry will become a formal criminal investigation. Price fixing can be a serious offense, leading to heavy fines and, in some cases, jail terms for executives."
The legal issues aside, does anyone really think that lack of access to affordable chocolate is a serious problem in the United States? Judging from The US of A's collective waistline, a little price fixing and consumer gouging could do our body mass indexes a bit of good.
According to a report from Bloomberg this morning, 
Tesla Roadster sets a record -- travels 313 miles on a single charge
Cramer on BloggingStocks: China's industrial focus helps lots of U.S. names 
Why do we have a weak dollar?
