Chinese drug maker to appeal US price-fixing fine  

中国企业积极应对天价罚单 按美程序申请撤销判决

位于河北省会石家庄的华北制药集团公司26日对外通报称，认为美国纽约东区联邦法院对维生素C反垄断案做出一审判决有悖事实和公正，目前正在按照美方法律程序积极申请撤销这项判决。

Shijiazhuang (CNS) -- A major Chinese drug maker said on Tuesday that it was appealing a massive fine for alleged price-fixing levied by a United States court.

North China Pharmaceutical Group Corp (NCPC), a major drug maker in north China's Hebei province, said the US court's ruling is both unfair and inappropriate. It is prepared to file a written appeal of the decision, NCPC said.

A federal court in Brooklyn ruled earlier this month that NCPC and its affiliate Hebei Welcome Pharmaceutical Co must pay $162 million in fines for colluding to raise prices for vitamin C exports to the US market.

Zhang Tingde, head of the law department at NCPC, said the company has never exported vitamin C to the United States, and the affiliate company's exports account for less than 20 percent of China's total drug exports.

China's Ministry of Commerce said last week it firmly supports law-abiding Chinese companies' right to actively protect their legal rights and interests.