Abu Dhabi: The prices of essential commodities across supermarkets and hypermarkets in the UAE are well under control in the holy month of Ramadan, thereby contributing to the country’s low rate of inflation, according to Dr. Hashem Al Nuaimi, director of the consumer protection department in the Ministry of Economy.
“I am satisfied with the prices. There are some 340 outlets and more than 1,600 items that we monitor,” Al Nuaimi told Gulf News while touring the Lulu Hypermarket in the capital’s Al Wahda Mall to monitor prices.
Al Nuaimi said there is a basket of essential food and consumer items for which the Ministry has instructed retailers to maintain prices. These prices would remain firm through the end of 2012, he added.
Inflation rate adjusts
According to the latest data from the UAE’s National Bureau of Statistics, the country’s annual inflation fell to 0.4 per cent in June, its lowest rate this year. The housing costs, which make up nearly 40 per cent of the consumer basket, fell 0.1 per cent month-on-month in June, the data showed. Food prices too dropped 0.3 per cent and transport costs were flat.
Yesterday, Abu Dhabi issued its first weekly report on food prices in the month of Ramadan. The Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi (SCAD) report indicated an increase of 2.6 per cent week-over-week in the prices of food commodities during the first week of Ramadan, reflecting rises in the prices of fish and seafood by 8.8 per cent, vegetables by 6.7 per cent and fruits by 4.2 per cent, while the price of the “milk, cheese and eggs” group retreated by 0.6 per cent.
