Romania's Competition Council has launched a monitoring exercise of the domestic fuel market following the expiration of temporary government interventions.
The regulatory body is assessing whether retail prices for gasoline and diesel are adjusting in line with market fundamentals now that state-imposed constraints have been lifted.
The move comes after the conclusion of a period during which commercial margins were capped and excise duties on diesel were temporarily reduced.
Authorities are specifically looking for evidence of anti-competitive behavior or unjustified price hikes by fuel distributors and retailers in the immediate aftermath of the policy shift.
This development mirrors broader regulatory scrutiny across Europe as governments unwind pandemic-era and inflation-driven energy subsidies.
In a similar vein, Nigeria's Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission recently launched an inquiry into its downstream petroleum sector, citing concerns that retail fuel prices had failed to adjust downward despite falling global crude benchmarks.