(Yicai Global) June 5 -- Chang'an Ford, the 50:50 joint venture between the US Ford Motor and China's Chongqing Chang'an Automobile submits to the official punishment because it violated China's Antitrust Law.

"We accept the government decision," Cao Zhenyu, Chang'an Ford executive vice president of national sales, told 21th Century Business Herald today, adding, "We have already made progress in eradicating monopolistic practices to correct past mistakes."

China's State Administration of Market Regulation fined Chang'an Ford CNY162.8 million (USD23.6 million) for violating the nation's anti-monopoly law today. The agency accuses the company of restricting its dealer's pricing rights in China's southwestern megacity of Chongqing, and thereby plying a vertical monopoly. 

Editor: Ben Armour