UAE: Retailers not allowed to hike prices of 9 basic commodities without approval

The UAE Cabinet has adopted a new pricing policy for basic consumer goods. Retailers are not allowed to hike the prices of nine basic commodities without approval from the Ministry of Economy.

The ministry will ensure the commitment of sales outlets to pricing the essentials in accordance with the policy. The products include cooking oils, eggs, dairy, rice, sugar, poultry, legumes, bread and wheat. This is a preliminary list, and other types of basic consumer goods can be added "according to price developments", the UAE government said.

The new policy focuses on developing fair mechanisms and effective procedures to regulate the relationship between commodity suppliers, outlets and consumers.

This came as His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, chaired a Cabinet meeting on Sunday.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Economy had approved a policy to keep price hikes of basic food items in check. As per the policy, suppliers will have to submit evidence to justify price increases of some of the most sought-after items such as fresh and dry milk, fresh chicken and eggs, bread, flour, sugar, salt, rice and legumes, cooking oil, mineral water and others.

This group includes more than 11,000 commodities, and suppliers who want to raise their prices due to high import costs must submit all the relevant evidence and data. The ministry will then decide on the approval and the rate hike.

Supporting local products

The Cabinet also adopted a new policy to support local products by changing the customs exemption policy. The exemption will now only be for imported materials that are not locally available.

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