Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has signed into law a bill on state regulation in retail trade, setting tougher antitrust requirements, the Kremlin website said on Tuesday.
The bill was passed by the lower house of parliament on December 18 and by the upper house seven days later.
The law is also aimed at creating transparent conditions of cooperation between suppliers and retailers. It also imposes infrastructure limitations on companies already holding a 25% share on the local market.
The bill fixes terms of payment for delivered goods, with restricted payment delays. In essence, goods due to go out of date in less than 10 days should be paid off no later than within 10 days of the delivery date. Retailers should also pay for domestic alcoholic products at least within 45 days.
Retailers repeatedly expressed worries over regulation of commerce. After the law was passed in the second reading, the ACORT Retailers Association pointed to the risk of a hike in prices and a sharp decrease in the assortment of foodstuffs in Russia.
Experts also warned restrictions on payment delays would make retailers more dependent on banking loans and increase expenses on the payment of interest.
The law will come into force on February 1, 2010.
MOSCOW, December 29 (RIA Novosti)
