Oil and Sugar Prices Have Increased: Daily Monitoring by the Competition Protection Commission

Taking into account the conditions of selling essential goods (food and non-food) during the declared state of emergency, as well as the need to collect, analyze, and assess information regarding prices and their supplies, the State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition of the Republic of Armenia has created working groups that operate in a 24-hour regime and conduct continuous monitoring of around 31 product groups (about 94 product types).

The announcement disseminated by the Commission also states: “In addition to conducting continuous monitoring of large suppliers of these products and major retail networks, the created working groups also examine complaints received via hotlines, media, and social networks, and if there are circumstances indicating problematic phenomena related to economic competition, the Commission conducts appropriate analyses and ensures their progress in accordance with the law.”

Among the aforementioned products are sugar, flour, oil, and butter, for which, based on recorded price increases in some commercial networks, the Commission has already initiated studies and has contacted economic entities to obtain information justifying the price increases.

Specifically, as a result of the observations conducted by the Commission, it has been registered that the price of sugar sold by the kilogram was 328 AMD/kg as of October 22, while the price of butter ranged from 3500 to 4130 AMD/kg (depending on the brand), sunflower oil was 740-790 AMD/liter (depending on the brand), and flour was 245-285 AMD/kg. At the same time, current studies conducted by the Commission have revealed that the prices for the aforementioned products or the raw materials necessary for their production have also increased, as well as sales prices in the countries from which these products are primarily imported. Price fluctuations for certain products may also stem from recent fluctuations in foreign currency rates.

It is important to emphasize that the Commission does not perform price regulation functions and only monitors the pricing policies of economic entities when there are signs of potential abuse of a dominant position or manifestations of anti-competitive agreements.

Earlier, there have been publications in the media stating that the prices of oil and sugar have sharply increased in recent days; specifically, the price of sugar has risen from 260-270 AMD to 350 AMD, while the price of oil has increased from 560-570 AMD to 780-820 AMD.