GFM: the online price monitor effectively helps reduce food prices

By: Trademagazin Date: 2023. 08. 11. 13:50

In addition to the professional support of the Ministry of Economic Development (GFM), the Economic Competition Office (GVH) launched the online price monitoring system on July 1, 2023. Based on the experience of the past more than a month, the price monitor has proven to be extremely effective and has generated price competition among the largest store chains, which to a significant extent offset the effects of the removal of the price cap applied to certain basic foods from August 1, the ministry emphasized in its statement on Friday.

Since the start of the system, the average prices of products have decreased in 52 out of 62 product categories. The average prices of the observed product groups decreased by an average of 6.5 percent as of August 9, which may have had the effect of reducing inflation by more than 0.5 percentage points and food inflation by about 1.8 percentage points, taking into account the weights of the CSO inflation consumer basket.

Since July 1, 2023, vegetable prices have fallen the most, so new potatoes for eating have become cheaper by more than 45 percent, green peppers by nearly 37 percent, tomatoes by 25 percent, and garlic by 22 percent. At the same time, the price of eggs also decreased by more than 27 percent, and the price of spaghetti and apples decreased by more than 15 percent since the start of the price monitor.