Thursday, October 12 2017 17:40

ArmInfo. Working group under the  Public Council of Armenia will find out the reasons for the recent  rise in price on the country's food market. It will also look for  ways to mitigate the effects of higher prices.

According to the press service of the department, a working  discussion was held on October 12 with representatives of the  Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank,  the State Revenue Committee, the National Statistical Service, the  State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition, and  public organizations.

The working group will identify the causes of price increases, both  objective and subjective, and its impact on the economy of the  country in terms of increasing the social burden of the population.  Ways will be identified to ensure that the negative situation is  directed towards the development of local production.

Monitoring of the State Commission for the Protection of Economic  Competition revealed an increase in prices for meat, butter and  gasoline. According to representatives of state agencies, the  increase in the cost of butter is due to the rise in price of the  product on the world market. They also noted that the process started  since May last year, and it is expected that the price increase may  continue. Taking into account the increased demand for the goods, the  Public Council called for the production of the product in Armenia.  As for meat prices, according to Deputy Minister of Agriculture of  Armenia Ashot Harutyunyan, the main reason for the rise in price was  the increase in the price of feed, which affected the total cost of  keeping livestock. According to him, due to additional expenses, the  villagers increased the price of meat and sold them to the  intermediaries at a new price. In addition, the volume of exports of  cattle increased, he said.

It is noteworthy that on the eve of the meeting with journalists,  Armenian Minister of Agriculture Ignaty Arakelyan, speaking about the  reasons for the rise in price of meat, said that after talks with the  villagers, he realized that, despite the increase in prices for  livestock feed, they did not raise the prices for beef and lamb. As  explained by the minister, the villagers are not interested in  raising prices, because they have a problem, both with the sale of  goods, and with the operative resolution of their own financial  tasks. And here, as the head of the Ministry of Agriculture  confessed, he sees concrete contradictions. "In this context, the  increase in meat prices in Yerevan is incomprehensible for me - I can  not explain the phenomenon in any way," Arakelyan said.

As for the increase in the price of gasoline, this is also due to the  increase in the cost of goods on the international market. Meanwhile,  according to the Public Council, there was no increase in gasoline  prices in the Russian market, from where petrol was mainly delivered  to Armenia. Following the discussion, the members of the Public  Council came to the conclusion that the Armenian government should  not only monitor the situation, but also analyze trends in the  market, and find flexible market mechanisms for influencing the  pricing process. In addition, the Cabinet called for the development  of a new policy and strategy for the development of agriculture. The  executive branch was also recommended to take the necessary steps to  maximize the negative impact of high prices on the population of the  country.

In the last month in Armenia there is a rise in price of meat and  butter. According to the National Statistical Service, the average  price for 1 kg of beef in August in Yerevan was about 2100 drams, and  lamb - about 2200 drams. Already in September, the price of one  kilogram of beef reached 2,100 to 2,500 AMD, lamb - from 2,200 to  2,800 drams, pork from 2,600 to 3,500 AMD. The relevant authorities  explain the increase in meat prices as an unfavorable year for  agriculture, and for oil - by price fluctuations in the world market.   Experts predict a further rise in price for essential goods.

In Armenia, there was also a rise in prices in the retail gasoline  market - by 20 drams. Regular gasoline costs 400 now, Premium - 420  AMD, diesel fuel also went up by 10 drams and costs 370. From  September 2016 to January 2017, Regular gasoline cost 330, and  Premium 350 drams. Large companies - Flash, CIPs Oil, Max Petrol buy  gasoline from Rosneft.