Commerce Commission raids Carter Holt offices

Carter Holt Harvey's offices were raided by the Commerce Commission yesterday afternoon as part of a probe into competition in the corrugated cardboard box market.

Commission officers turned up at the company's head office in Auckland with search warrants. They also visited the offices of Australian packaging company Visy.

Carter Holt said the regulator wanted to check if the company was engaged in anti-competitive behaviour in the Australasian corrugated packaging industry.

Jackie Maitland, speaking for the commission, said the inquiry was separate to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's probe into the Australian corrugated box market but the two regulators were aware of each other's work.

It was also separate to an investigation the commission was continuing into allegations that Carter Holt Harvey sold weaker-than-advertised timber framing. That investigation was under the Fair Trading Act. The probe into the corrugated box market was under the Commerce Act.

Carter Holt has about 36 per cent of the New Zealand corrugated box market. Amcor and Visy have most of the rest divided between them.

In Australia, Amcor and Visy have about 90 per cent of the corrugated box market and Carter Holt has about 4 per cent of the market.

This week, Amcor accepted the resignation of chief executive Russell Jones and Australasian head Peter Sutton after an internal investigation into cartel-like conduct.

Carter Holt had to admit it had hired former Amcor staff as consultants and documents belonging to it had ended up in Amcor's possession as part of a court case between the consultants and Amcor.

Carter Holt said it would assist the commission with its inquiries.

WHAT'S BEING INVESTIGATED:

Alleged selling of weak wood under the Fair Trading Act.

Alleged anti-competitive behaviour in the corrugated box market under the Commerce Act.