DOJ investigating PVC prices after short seller report, FT says

The Department of Justice is investigating potential price-fixing in the market for PVC pipes, as disclosed in a filing by manufacturer Otter Tail (OTTR), which The Fly has previously noted said on Thursday it had received a grand jury subpoena “for production of documents regarding the manufacturing, selling, and pricing of PVC pipe.” Financial Times’ Dan McCrum and Stefania Palma additionally note that the DOJ investigation follows a report in July by the pseudonymous short seller firm ManBear, which said prices “defy economic logic” and that price inflation had pushed “profits to never-before-seen levels” that were unsustainable. ManBear, a low-profile activist that has previously focused on antitrust questions, disclosed short positions in Otter Tail, manufacturers Westlake (WLK) and Atkore (ATKR), and also Core & Main (CNM), a water pipe distributor, which the report alleged had “benefited materially from pipe inflation,” FT noted.