Weak Enforcement Leads to Overpricing of Wheat and Sugar - Press Release issued by Free and Fair Election Network.

Islamabad -- July 01, 2020 (PPI-OT)

Following is the text of press release issued by Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN)

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More than half of the markets in Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan sold wheat flour and sugar at higher prices than those officially notified as people struggled to access the official price lists of everyday commodities in a majority of the markets in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh.

While the official price of wheat had mainly remained stable over the past two months, the market price registered an increase of seven percent to 46 percent across various districts, with the most significant increase recorded in Loralai. However, the wheat price came down in Dera Bugti (five percent) and Jacobabad (24 percent).

The official price of sugar remained stable except for a few districts where a one percent to 16 percent increase was recorded. Its market price registered one percent to 42 percent increase across various regions, the biggest noted in Karachi South.

The official price of chicken increased up to 77 percent in Gujranwala, while its market price saw a rise of up to 93 percent in Qamber Shahdadkot. There was an increase of up to 14 percent in official price of beef in Bahawalpur and Lodhran and an up to 20 percent in its market price, in Multan.

Similarly, official and market prices of mutton witnessed an up to 23 percent and up to 64 percent increase, respectively. The highest increase in official prices was observed in Bahawalpur, and the highest increase in market prices was noted in Multan.

These findings form part of the ninth Weekly Price Monitor based on a market survey conducted on Thursday, June 25, 2020, in 43 cities - 13 each in Punjab and...