Aliaksandr Lukashenka said at today’s meeting on the development of rural retail trade that inflation has slowed. At the same time, he said, the government has still failed to develop a “fair price formula.”
“The government has still not developed the mechanism. Initially, it was proposed to monitor prices using the ‘Price Analysis’ automated information system. At a government meeting, I warned the first deputy prime minister that you can create any system you like, but it must deliver results. Now they seem to be proposing to mothball it. I’m not talking about artificial intelligence now, but about managerial intelligence, where there are tasks and accountability,” he said.
Lukashenka noted that prices have increased by only 2.9% since the beginning of the year.
“It looks fairly good, but we cannot relax — it is still an increase,” he said.
At the same time, he pointed out that since the beginning of the year, cabbage prices have risen by 38%, onions by 24% and beets by 17%.
“Violations of price discipline are occurring everywhere. We have even opened criminal cases,” he said.
It should be noted that prices for some vegetables do typically rise in June and July. This is primarily due to the arrival of early-season produce on the market, which is traditionally more expensive than vegetables sold during the peak harvest season.
Lukashenka also recalled that the Council of Ministers recently reduced the list of price-regulated goods from 200 to 76 items.
“We will see how your decision works over time. But keeping prices and inflation within the planned range is the government’s responsibility,” he said.
