FTC's Proposed Petroleum Market Manipulation Rule and Market Manipulation Workshop

On November 6, 2008, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) held a workshop in which its staff examined support for and opposition to a proposed Petroleum Market Manipulation Rule designed to prohibit fraud and deception in wholesale petroleum markets. Various industry participants were invited to take part in the workshop. This memo discusses the views expressed at the workshop, along with previously submitted comments, and the FTC’s plans to determine the format and content of a final rule prohibiting market manipulation in the petroleum industry.