Mexican watchdog cites Amazon and MercadoLibre for unfair competition practices

Mexico's Federal Economic Competition Commission, called Cofece for short, recently concluded that both Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) create significant barriers to competition in Mexico for third-party sellers on their platforms. 

Cofece determined that the e-commerce companies lack transparency in how featured products are selected and give greater visibility to sellers who utilize their proprietary logistics services, which is seen as a notable disadvantage to other sellers

Specifically, Cofece's investigation determined that Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) do not clearly communicate the criteria used for determining which sellers products are featured on the platforms. 

Notably, Amazon (AMZN) and MercadoLibre (MELI) account for over 85% of all online sales in Mexico. For now, both companies avoided regulatory penalties from Cofece.

"We are pleased with Cofece's decision not to impose corrective measures, which underscores the competitiveness of the retail sector in Mexico and the absence of barriers to competition," read a statement provided to the media by Fernanda Ramo, deputy general counsel and director of legal affairs at Amazon Mexico.