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In the previous period and since the beginning of the dollar crisis, the Lebanese have become used to the rise in the prices of food products on a daily basis, as the answer often came to them when asked about the price of any product food, along with the phrase “until now and according to the price of the dollar”, and why these citizens were convinced that the price of basic products was increasing. Linked to the rise in the dollar exchange rate, they expected prices to fall with the drop in the exchange rate. However, it does not happened. In contrast, a small round of food outlets showed that prices not only did not decline, but continued to rise further.
The increase in the prices of food products is also confirmed by the Consumer Protection Association index, which shows the increase in prices during the month of August (until the 15th) by 22.84 percent compared to the months of April, May and June, knowing that the price in dollars has not exceeded 8000 pounds since the beginning of the second week of August. On some days, it dropped from 7,000, after having risen to more than 10,000 Syrian pounds at the end of last July.
The largest price increase during the month of August, according to the association’s index, was in the price of meat, which rose 32.70 percent, followed by the prices of canned food, oils and grains at 28.60 percent. percent, then some types of bread 25 percent and milk and cheese 18.20 percent, while fruits had the lowest participation. From a 1.8 percent increase, vegetable prices decreased by 21.38 percent.
In this context, Dr. Nada Nehme, vice president of the Consumer Protection Association, says that the prices of food products “continue to rise in the absence of a supervisory role and in an environment controlled by monopolies and in which traders control prices on the pretext that they have bought food at a high price in dollars, “he added in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat said that buying at a high exchange rate” does not justify the trader selling the product at the same price with the lower price of the dollar, because by doing so, you are working to increase your capital at the expense of the consumer. “
Nehme expected, in the absence of price monitoring and control mechanisms, that the prices of food products would continue to rise, noting that the prices of these products in Lebanon are the most expensive in the region and that, in light of the chaos the dollar, have become very high.
In turn, the head of the Food Importers Union, Hani Al-Bohsali, is surprised by the high prices of food products, and considers it unjustified. Regarding the lack of price decrease, he considers it a natural matter, explaining in an interview with “Asharq Al-Awsat” that the prices of these products “are originally calculated on the basis of a higher exchange rate that does not exceed the £ 7,000 “. Even when its price was 10,000, because any increase above this limit means the impossibility of disposing of these goods. Therefore, “it is natural that commodity prices remain the same and the dollar today is within the 7000 range.”
While Al-Bohsali considered that the prices of raw materials could start to fall when the exchange rate falls below 7000. He explained that even this “can take weeks for the importer to change what he bought on the basis of a rate. of high change “.
While the prices of food products continue to rise, the citizen tries to look for subsidized products within the food basket that the Banque du Liban offers to import dollars on the basis of an exchange rate equivalent to 3,900 Lebanese pounds, but in most of cases these materials are not available and the reason is due to their limited quantities and the complexity of their transactions. Pay some merchants not to buy them.
In this context, Al-Bohsali points out that the Ministry of Economy did not oblige merchants to the subsidized food basket, for which the majority preferred not to enter it “because it stipulates that importers do not deliver the merchandise to distributors, but directly to large commercial stores and small stores with a specified profit margin ”, explaining that this issue” increases the cost for the importer since he needs transport vehicles and drivers, which made the number of importers in the basket of subsidized food is limited and, therefore, the amounts of subsidized food are also limited. “
Nehme confirms that subsidizing the food basket did not contribute to lowering the prices of basic products, explaining that the Consumer Protection Association believes that the support policy adopted by the ministry was incorrect, as it “chose to support a few traders lucky importers with around $ 1.523 billion as an alternative to direct support to families in need of money and vouchers, similar to all world experiences. “And that this subsidy does not reach consumers except between 10 and 20 percent in the best of cases.
The Minister of Economy and Trade of the interim government, Raoul Nehme, sent a letter to the Governor of the Banque du Liban, Riad Salameh, requesting the lifting of subsidies on basic products related to animal and agricultural production, as this constitutes a loss of public money.
His blessing was a tweet on Twitter, stating that “since the beginning of the subsidies to commodities related to livestock and agricultural production, their prices have not decreased, but some of them have increased twice the previous prices of the subsidy”, and that it will not accept “supporting these commodities since this constitutes a waste of public money, while accepting Supporting other basic products when their prices drop significantly.”
On the possibility of interrupting food products, especially after the Beirut port explosion, Al-Bohsali assured that there is no indication that it could be interrupted, but noted that a large amount of goods are still in the port, and this means more cost to the importer, that is, the possibility of an increase in their prices later.
Source: Middle East
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