Competition of domestic producers to increase prices
In recent months, and especially since the beginning of this year and at the same time with the increase of the dollar exchange rate, there is close competition among domestic producers to increase the prices of manufactured products as much as possible and most domestically produced units have increased the prices of their products. In this competition, the fines of regulatory agencies have not been able to prevent these measures.
According to the International Iranian Stone Exhibition, we had news that Saipa Company has increased the price of its products and for example, the price of Tiba 2 has increased from about sixty million tomans to seventy-seven million tomans, which is a twenty-eight percent price increase.
Apparently, this rate increase is based on the agreements made between the Competition Council and the Market Regulation Headquarters, and it is also planned to increase the prices of domestically produced cars once every three months, based on the inflation rate announced by the Central Bank.
I wish that such a license would be granted to the Supreme Labor Council and other related institutions, so that at least once every six months in proportion to the inflation rate announced by the Central Bank to reform the salaries of salaried employees, including military, national, social security and pensioners. They did, although this is not the subject of this memo and requires more time.
But the main thing:
In recent months, and especially since the beginning of this year and at the same time with the increase of the dollar exchange rate, there is close competition among domestic producers in order to increase the prices of manufactured products as much as possible and most domestically produced units increase the prices of their products. have given.
In this competition, the fines of regulatory agencies have not been able to prevent these measures. From the prices of dairy products to home appliances, food products and so on. Of course, the prices of domestic automakers' products, all of which have been able to compete in the monopoly market, have been able to take advantage of the existing conditions and in some cases due to the ban on the import of similar foreign products.
The Ministry of Industry, Mines and Trade, as the market regulator, has not been able to regulate the market and prevent price increases due to the frequent change of ministers and administration by the interim head.
The issue becomes more interesting when, due to the naming of last year as Support for Domestic Production and this year as "Production Leap", the officials and owners of manufacturing companies expected the people to support domestic producers by using their products. But now that the conditions are in place for these producers and there is almost no trace of similar foreign goods in the market due to the ban or lack of currency, we see that some of these producers did not accompany the people and used the conditions of the day to compete for They have started to increase the price of their products and they are not short, and they have included maximum profitability in their work plan.
In fact, supporting domestic production and protecting consumer rights is a two-way equation in which, under the supervision of the government, both sides of the equation benefit from this relationship and their rights are respected, and everyone expects the parties to this equation to respect each other's mutual rights.
Consumer rights are improved by improving the quality of products, proper supply while reducing sales prices, and the observance of producers' rights is done by consumers by buying domestic products and not welcoming similar foreign products.
Unfortunately, it seems that the road to support domestic production is a one-way street, and some domestic producers have shown that in critical situations, they have no obligation to comply with the rules of this equation and are looking for an opportunity to increase product prices as much as possible. Take action in any way possible.
In this situation, some of these domestic producers, whether capital or consumer products, with and without reason, under the pretext of increasing the exchange rate or reducing imports, have increased the prices of their products, and in some cases due to increasing as much as possible. These prices, with the help of some intermediaries, also hoard and store their products and refuse to continuously supply their products to the market in order to create more artificial shortages, which from time to time stock these products. Depots are seized by prosecutors, governors in different parts of the country.
Do we mean supporting the domestic producers, the producers who are looking for an opportunity to make the most of the existing conditions and increase their wealth? And of course, during the market recession and the intensification of competition in a normal economic situation, epic slogans supporting domestic production and shouting for help from the people and asking people to support domestic production through various channels, including the government?
Is the protection of domestic products a one-way street in which only the people should play a role and others, including domestic producers, have no responsibility or obligation in this regard?
* Alireza Haeri - Member of the Board of Directors of Tehran Province House of Industry and Mines - IRNA
