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Business watchdog to work with Chinese authorities on garlic trade problem
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Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) chairman Syarkawi Rauf speaks to journalists during press briefing in Jakarta on May 30. (JP/Anton Hermansyah)
T
he Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) will work with the Chinese authorities that deal with anti-business monopolies to address a problem in garlic trading that had sparked a sharp price increase for the commodity.
"We are suspicious that the garlic trade problem started in China. Therefore, we have to coordinate with China's competition authority," said KPPU chairman Syarkawi Rauf during a press briefing in his office in Jakarta on Tuesday.
Based on an investigation by the commission, the six business groups that have dominated garlic trading imported the commodity from China, while, in China, the trade in garlic was dominated by only two big traders, he added.
The KPPU and other Asian competition authorities were connected under the East Asia Top Level Officials' Meeting on Competition Policy (EATOP).
Previously the KPPU had been working with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in dealing with a beef cartel in that country.
"We will focus on investigating the motives of the players in the garlic supply chains that have caused the price surge," he said.
Police arrested three alleged smugglers and hoarders of garlic in Marunda, North Jakarta, recently. Hundreds of tons of garlic were seized by the Jakarta Police during a raid.
The commodity, which was suspected of having been smuggled into Indonesia from China and India, was stockpiled at the North Jakarta warehouse.The price of garlic in Jakarta has surged to Rp 70,000 (US$5.26) per kilogram in the last few days, up from Rp 40,000 per kilogram in January, hargapangan.id shows. (bbn)
