05:03 PM EDT, 03/28/2024 (MT Newswires) -- A group of US lawmakers is pushing the US Federal Trade Commission to enforce a price discrimination law, the Robinson-Patman Act, on findings that large retailers such as Amazon.com ( AMZN ) and Walmart ( WMT ) kept grocery prices high while boosting profit during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

The lawmakers, spearheaded by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democratic, sent a letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan pushing the agency to bring cases under the rarely used antitrust law, according to the report.

The FTC issued a statement last week saying it issued a report revealing "large market participants accelerated and distorted the negative effects associated with supply chain disruptions" resulting from the pandemic.

The agency said that "some in the grocery retail industry seem to have used rising costs as an opportunity to further raise prices to increase their profits, which remain elevated today."

Amazon ( AMZN ), Walmart ( WMT ) and the FTC didn't immediately respond to requests for comment from MT Newswires.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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