The ministry listed chicken, pork, cooking oil, eggs, milk, dairy products, flour and sugar as the staple products where prices must be reduced in order to protect families and pensioners from food inflation.

Finally, the ministry said that if the voluntary price limitation does not yield results, the National Economy Ministry is ready to resort to official measures to intervene against price increasers.

Govt to cap supermarkets' profit margins on some foods

Prime Minister Viktor Orban said the government would cap retailers' profit margins on some staples at 10pc from the middle of March in a video message on social media.

Orban said the cap would apply to 30 basic foods and remain in force until the end of May. If a review determines that the measure is still necessary at that time, it will be continued, he added.

He said the government had held talks with supermarket chains to mitigate "unwarranted and exorbitant" price increases, but the retailers' offers were "well short of our expectations".

He noted that the price of eggs had climbed 40pc and butter and sour cream prices were up more than 80pc. "That's unacceptable," he said.

List of foods:

• Chicken breast fillet

• Chicken thigh

• Chicken back

• Chicken wings

• Whole chicken

• Turkey breast fillet

• UHT milk, 1.5% fat

• UHT milk, 2.8% fat

• ESL milk, 1.5% fat

• ESL milk, 2.8% fat

• Cooking oil

• Margarine

• Lard

• Butter

• All-purpose flour

• Pastry flour

• Late-harvest potatoes

• Granulated sugar

• Pork leg

• Pork loin

• Pork ribs

• Pork shoulder

• Eggs

• Sour cream

• Trappist cheese

• Cottage cheese

• Plain yogurt

• Fruit yogurt

• Garlic

• Bologna (Párizsi-style cold cut)
  
   

Consultation with retailers on profit margin cap continuous - ministry

The National Economy Ministry said on Friday that it is continuously in consultation with affected retailers regarding the implementation of the profit margin cap.

The ministry said it would review all queries, including ones from retailers's association OKSZ. It noted that the association so far has sent the ministry a question only regarding the proportion of private label products that needs clarification.

The ministry said a professional guide will also be published, which will help the relevant actors in the predictable and uniform application of the law.

The ministry said the margin cap, which comes into force on Monday and caps supermarkets' profit margins at 10pc for some goods, could result in an average price reduction of more than 10pc for the thirty product categories affected.

Price stability 'top priority' of central bank - governor

The National Bank of Hungary (NBH) needs to concentrate on achieving and maintaining price stability amid the current economic circumstances, Mihaly Varga, the central bank governor, said at a year-opener of the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MKIK).

Varga said the the NBH could most efficiently contribute to reaching macroeconomic targets by achieving price stability and maintaining financial market stability.

He affirmed the central bank's commitment to achieving and maintaining the inflation target.

Varga noted increasing uncertainty surrounding external macroeconomic factors and pointed to the need for disciplined, patient monetary policy. The central bank is following closely external and internal trends, as well as risks surrounding outlooks, he added.

Varga acknowledged that Hungary's economic balance had improved in spite of the unpredictable international environment, and that the financial system was stable and growth outlooks favourable.

He said signs of latent inflation warranted caution, adding that prices of market services, as well as food and fuel prices, had contributed to the increase in CPI since September.

He said the central bank, the government, the banking association and the competition watchdog needed to work together to scrutinise persistently high price dynamics of market services, adding that the NBH would soon make recommendations regarding the matter.

Varga said the Hungarian economy was supported by a broad footing and highlighted data showing high employment, real wage growth, increasing consumption, high household savings and an improvement in growth outlooks. He added that consumption and investments would be the engine of economic growth and that outlooks for higher corporate investments were favourable.

Varga said businesses faced three risks: uncertainty surrounding demand, inflation fears and administrative burdens.

Maintaining price stability can contribute to an improvement in consumer confidence, a predictable investment environment and an economic upturn, he added.

Source: 
MTI - The Hungarian News Agency, founded in 1881.

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