Milan, 6 March. (LaPresse) – ‘In light of the significant tensions on energy prices recorded in recent days, linked to the worsening geopolitical crisis in the Middle East, the Guardia di Finanza, on the recommendation of the Minister of Economy and Finance in agreement with the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy, has strengthened its monitoring of legality throughout the entire fuel supply chain’. This is stated in a note emphasising that ‘the intensification of control activities, which is part of the broader functions of economic and financial policing, responds to the primary need to prevent any form of distortion that could harm consumers and alter the proper functioning of the market.’ The measures ‘will be aimed, on the one hand, at verifying compliance with the rules on transparency and advertising of consumer prices and, on the other, at analysing the trend in the market values of energy products at all stages of marketing, also with a view to uncovering any anti-competitive agreements’. ‘At the same time, given that rapid fluctuations in consumer prices can fuel the risk of increased recourse to illegal supply channels, economic control of the territory will be intensified in order to uncover any evasion or fraud, carried out through the release for consumption of energy products removed from the tax regime, the false classification of fuels and irregularities in the circulation and traceability of products,’ , the note concludes.