The combined effect of several government measures has halved food price inflation from its previous peak, the government's spokeswoman told Hungary's public radio.
Alexandra Szentkiralyi said the cabinet used the right tools to bring down inflation, which - as the figures show - has been hit in the stomach and has fallen to its knees. The fight, however, is not over and the goal is to reach a single-digit inflation rate.
There is a good chance that this target could be reached as early as October, rather than the end of the year as originally expected.
the government spokeswoman said, explaining that inflation had fallen to 17.6 per cent in July, down two and a half per cent from the previous month, with food prices down 0.9 per cent. On an annual basis, the combined effect of several government measures had cut food inflation almost in half from its peak, a trend the cabinet wanted to encourage, she said.
Asked by the moderator about the price freeze sheme cancelled at the beginning of August, the spokeswoman said that experience had shown that the measure had forced the big multinational supermarket chains to cut prices, with the price squeeze already visible in 52 out of 62 product categories.
A fierce competition has started in the retail sector, with average prices for these product groups falling by an average of 6.5 per cent by 9 August, with one or two product categories seeing even higher percentage price reductions,"
she said. Vegetable prices have decreased the most, with new potatoes down by more than 45 percent on average, green peppers by 37 percent and eggs by 27 percent.
The constant price competition that the government's measures are forcing on multinationals is very effective and experience shows that consumers are watching the tools that the government has put in their hands, the politician said, pointing out that the online price monitoring system, for example, has registered more than one million unique users since its launch.
People are using the system consciously, they are watching the promotions, so now not only the authorities but also the customers are penalizing supermarkets where prices are too high, i.e. they will simply go to another supermarket, she said.
It is the people rather than multinational companies that need help now, so the government will not let the multinationals engage in profiteering. Further developments are also in the works, regarding, among others, the online price monitoring system.
she said.
Commenting on the monitoring of the mandatory discounts introduced at the beginning of June, Alexandra Szentkiralyi said that by the beginning of August inspectors had checked 642 supermarkets, and they had found just over 90 violations in 65 retail units, meaning that ten percent of the supermarkets had committed some kind of offense. In most cases, discounts or special offers were not displayed, while in others the discount scheme was simply not followed," the government spokeswoman said. She noted that the value of the fines imposed so far amounted to HUF 25 million, a much lower figure than the fines imposed during the price caps, which exceeded HUF 3 billion.
Alexandra Szentkiralyi said that the price freeze would be reinstated between 18 and 20 August, during the St. Stephen's Day celebrations. Among others, mineral water, beer and pretzels, for example, will be available at fixed, reduced prices at designated supermarkets.
