The Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Sunday warned dairy companies which have arbitrarily increased prices of fresh milk and laban packs. Minister Abdullah Bin Ahmad Zainal Alireza has issued a decision to subject fresh milk and laban prices to rules addressing the supply of goods in extraordinary conditions. The minister's directives say whoever increases prices or refuses to sell at prices specified for fresh milk and laban packs will be considered to have violated rules stipulated in the Council of Ministers decision No. 855 dated May 26, 1975 (26/5/1396H) and face the penalties spelled out in the decision. The announcement also said that committees of representatives of the Ministry of Interior, different governorates; the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and its branches; and Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs, mayoralties and municipalities will confirm violations, according to a decision from the Minster of Commerce and Industry. Documents confirming the violations will be forwarded by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to the Second Deputy Premier or whoever he authorizes to issue decisions imposing the penalties, the announcement said. The ministry said the decision aims to maintain normal prices in local markets, and that it is all the more motivated to do so because the industry receives state's support and encouragement. New laws will fight fraud The Ministry of Commerce will soon issue a new law to address commercial fraud that will focus on problems preventing inspectors from accurately checking commodity prices. The ministry, a source said, will also intensify inspection campaigns to spot false price reductions and price manipulation. Each trader, the source added, should present documents showing that he was the exclusive agent for the commodity so the ministry can inspect the real cause or source of any price increase. “The Ministry of Commerce has received several complaints about manipulation of price reductions and it is investigating each complaint separately,” the source said. He also indicated that the subject was on the ministry's top priority and that all traders were aware of procedures to follow for reduction in prices. Denying reports that the ministry was not properly following up with cases of commercial fraud, the source stressed the importance of remembering the size of the Saudi market and the small number of trained inspectors. Price reductions are subject to several regulations to ensure that the consumer will benefit from them. The most common reductions involve tags on products to show the price before and after the reduction; the goods with reduced prices should not be less than 50 percent of the goods of a store. Applications to reduce prices should be submitted one month before the deadline and the commodity should be licensed by the Chamber of Commerce. __
