CNI News
31 July 2023
Because there are ones who are selling basic foods with higher prices, based on rising prices of gold and dollar, effective action should be taken against those who make commodity prices higher, said businessmen and economic analysts.
Although some people who are making speculations on gold and dollar are being arrested at present, they were only small-scale speculators without being effective and those who are making speculations on a large scale should be effectively taken actions against, said U Thet Zaw, an economic analyst to CNI News.
A fuel station
"There are unfairly greedy people. Action must be taken against those blokes. I want to ask the authorities if they don't dare to take action against. Based on the dollar price, all the prices seem to go up. Apart from fuel and medicine, the price of palm oil is going up. Now you have to pay 10,000 kyats for a viss ( 3.6 lb ). Shall we have to be sitting tight like that? If the people can't stand it, if they are getting mentally weak, what will happen? Think about the consequences a little.
"There are still no effective actions. Large-scale gold speculators have not been arrested as yet. But small-scale ones have been arrested. In fact, there are consumer affairs departments in the markets. You don't have to arrest more than 15 people who sell with higher prices. And then all the prices will fall again. Myanmar people tend to have fear. As soon as there are arrests, prices will fall." he said.
Rich Myanmar citizens have increased buying real estate, gold and dollars without holding Myanmar currency for long. At the same time, commodity prices also come to rise. In order to control the current situation, the State should buy its reserve gold and land lots, said Myanmar economic analysts.
A rice shop
If large-scale business people who are trading gold, dollars and fuel and who are making prices higher were arrested, the country's productive power could be damaged. So, it should be thought over, said U Aung Pyae Sone, a businessman.
" 10 large-scale business people from gold trading, 10 from dollar trading and 10 from fuel trading_ as soon as they are arrested and sent into jail, the country's GDP(gross domestic product) will be reduced to almost half. That should be thought of again. There is monetary inflation in every country. There are more monetary inflations in countries with armed conflicts like Myanmar. The money's value tends to fall very quickly. So, rich people don't want to keep the Myanmar money any more. They have increasingly held dollars and gold. As a result, the prices of gold and dollars come to rise. So, the government needs to make some policies that can encourage the people to hold Myanmar money." he said to CNI News.
The government needs to provide loans depending on the manufacturing sector so that local productivity can be increased with the people's basic salaries, said business people. At present daily income of basic salary has been designated as 4,800 kyats which is equal to the price of 4.375 lb of rice reportedly.
