Dubai: The Department of Economic Development (DED) said it has noticed an increase of up to 53 per cent in the prices of some commodities and has warned retailers and traders against price rises and manipulation.

A surge in demand for several commodities during Ramadan is not an acceptable excuse to increase prices in the market, Mohammad Lootah, Deputy CEO of Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection Division in DED, said.

“By monitoring the price of over 200 commodities in the market, we found a 30 per cent increase in the price of sugar and a 20 per cent hike in the price of meat and dairy products. The increase in fruit and vegetable prices varied.”

Following this, the department called for an urgent meeting with major retailers who claim that exporters have put pressure on them to increase prices without prior permission from the Ministry of Economy.

However, the department considers all attempts to increase prices a violation of the consumer protection law, Lootah added.

Lootah added: “The department is maintaining a strict watch and has had several meetings with fruit and vegetable vendors, as well as fish and meat traders to raise awareness and ask them to keep prices stable.”

He said that violations of consumer rights will be taken seriously.

Regular inspections have found several outlets across the emirates guilty of increasing prices during the month of Ramadan.

The Consumer Protection Department of the Ministry of Economy imposed fines ranging from Dh5,000 to Dh100,000 on these violators.

The vendors have been asked to keep prices stable during Ramadan and not to take advantage of increased demand by overcharging customers.

“We have fined two outlets and this is a part of our efforts to ensure that prices are not increased. The fine will be decided and it can be anything between Dh5,000 and Dh100,000. Along with my team, I am inspecting the prices in the markets every morning and also evenings,” Dr Hashem Al Nuaimi, Director of Consumer Protection Department of the Ministry of Economy, told Gulf News.

On regulating the prices in supermarkets, Al Nuaimi said that the department officials will also inspect supermarkets regularly to check any violations.

The authorities have also asked consumers to report incidents of unfair price hikes, overcharging and failure by vendors to display the prices of their merchandise during the month of Ramadan.

Consumers can report violations on 971 600 545555