<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Federal Government will introduce laws today that they hope will stop price gouging from major supermarkets.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Delivering on a </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/federal-election-2025-prime-minister-anthony-albanese-announces-tough-crackdown-on-supermarket-price-gouging/1c17d070-5a99-4364-a4c9-431fda60de99" rel="" target="_blank" title="major promise"><span>major promise</span></a><span> from this year's election campaign, the Albanese Government will introduce legislation that would lead to major supermarkets facing heavy fines if they are found to be price gouging.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/accc-supermarkets-report-coles-woolworths-aldi-and-metcash-in-the-spotlight/dcfff44f-ba5f-4a4e-94b9-8837e2f2aea2" rel="" target="_blank" title="report"><span>report</span></a><span> from the ACCC, Australia's consumer watchdog, earlier this year recommended action be taken against "shrinkflation", where products become smaller but are not reduced in price, as well as greater transparency on prices and loyalty programs and regulation of promotions offered by supermarkets.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/louvre-museum-robbery-musee-du-louvre-closed-for-exceptional-reasons/aabe4c60-19e9-41da-930d-9763d1c095b4" target="_blank"><strong><span>Shaky phone vision emerges of high-stakes four-minute Louvre heist</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Whilst the report didn't say the two largest supermarkets Coles and Woolworths had a duopoly on the market, it did note, "Australia's supermarket industry is highly concentrated with an oligopoly structure, dominated by Coles and Woolworths".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Speaking during the election in April, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese claimed his government would take the findings of the report seriously.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Labor will make price gouging by supermarkets illegal," he said, whilst promising to introduce a taskforce to help introduce an excessive pricing scheme, which would then be policed by the ACCC.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/coles-woolworths-aldi-australia-supermarkets-price-gouging-laws-labor-government/da731a5c-33d2-4b39-90bc-7d8deb09a58e" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/suspected-space-junk-crash-lands-on-wa-mine-site/d44e81a0-46ea-4ede-9d7a-cad4ddfd1e27" target="_blank"><strong><span>Mysterious flaming 'space junk' crashes into remote WA</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Coles </span><a href="https://www.colesgroup.com.au/FormBuilder/_Resource/_module/ir5sKeTxxEOndzdh00hWJw/file/Annual_Report.pdf" rel="" target="_blank" title="reported"><span>reported</span></a><span> a profit of $1.08 billion at the end of the 2024-25 financial year, whilst </span><a href="https://www.woolworthsgroup.com.au/content/dam/wwg/investors/reports/f25/f25/2936255.pdf" rel="" target="_blank" title="Woolworths"><span>Woolworths</span></a><span> had a profit of $1.4 billion.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In ALDI's most recent financial report in 2023, they recorded a profit of $402 million.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The new laws introduced by the government today are the second political move to regulate supermarkets, with the Competition and Consumer Amendment (Make Price Gouging Illegal) Bill currently before the Senate.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Coles and Woolworths are also facing a joint class action over allegations they misled shoppers with discount pricing claims.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div 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