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Traders say imposing price ceiling on sugar is unfair
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A worker carries a sack of sugar on his shoulder at a warehouse in Jakarta. (Tempo/-)
T
raders say imposing a price ceiling of Rp 12,500 (93 US cents) per kilogram on sugar is unfair because they were not involved in the decision making.
“It is difficult to implement because there was no communication with the traders,” said the head of the Indonesian Market Traders Association, Abdullah Mansuri, on Friday as reported by kompas.com.
Previously, through the Trade Ministry, the government set the retail price of sugar at Rp 12,500 together with producers and distributors.
Abdullah said the traders should be informed about the distribution of the margins – the price at the retail level compared to the price at the wholesale level.
He said that with a margin of between Rp 500 to Rp 1,000 per kilogram, traders currently sold sugar for Rp 14,500 per kilogram.
Therefore, the government needs to involve traders when discussing the price ceiling of sugar, he added.
“It is unfair if we have to implement an agreement without any explanation about the distribution of the margins,” Abdullah added.
Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita said that the decision implemented President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s instruction to control the price and to do so his ministry had cut the distribution chain by involving state-owned companies, regional administration-owned companies and the private sector.
“It is the task of the government to guarantee the availability of the commodity and to stabilize the price to make it affordable,” said Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita. (bbn)
