Armenia’s anti-trust body records rise of prices of eggs and fish

YEREVAN, March 13. / ARKA /. Chief of Armenia’s State Commission for Protection of Economic Competition (SCPEC) Artak Shaboyan told reporters today that his agency  recorded a slight increase in the prices of eggs and fish.

He said although poultry farms cite arguments to justify the rise the anti-trust agency has started an inquiry to find out whether the price increase is adequate to companies’ additional costs and once again warned poultry farms, as well as supermarkets that unjustified rise in prices is a gross violation of the rules of competition that may be treated as abuse of dominant position in the market. He also added that SCPEC continues daily monitoring of the markets. 

The demand for eggs in Armenia traditionally grows ahead of Easter. According to the latest findings of the SCPEC Monitoring Group, some poultry farms have raised the price of a dozen of eggs by 20-60 drams, blaming the hike on increase of feed price which they import from abroad. 

According to the Union of Poultry Farmers of Armenia, feed cost accounts for 70% of the cost of eggs. It says the price of maize increased by 62%, that of soybeans by 78% and the price of wheat by 42%.

As for the fish market, Shaboyan said his agency began monitoring it  not long ago finding out that two fisheries  -Masis Dzuk and Unifish - were dominating the market."

Earlier, the head of the Association of Fish Farmers of Armenia, Artur Atoyan, predicted that the price of fish ahead of Easter will rise by about 100 drams and by another 300 drams after the holiday. The average price of one kilogram of fish (usually trout)  is now about 1450 drams. ($ 1 - 411.21 drams). -0-