The purpose of this paper is to analyse regulatory developments in the road freight and retail distribution industries of OECD Member countries. For each industry, the analysis is divided into four parts. First, structural developments in the industry are outlined. Second, the main features of the regulatory framework are reviewed. The third part compares regulatory approaches on the basis of quantitative indicators of the degree of restrictions placed on market mechanisms. The last part summarises the main outcomes of regulatory reform. The data on regulation and market structure are taken primarily from the OECD International Regulation Database.

The main findings of the analysis are the following:

• Both industries are currently undergoing sweeping changes, with, in particular, the rapid growth of new forms of competition;
• The pace and scale of liberalisation vary widely from one country and one industry to another, and in many countries there are still regulatory impediments to ...