Ministers To Check Markets For Rising Prices Of Goods

[Lite Beer]

Ministers to check markets for rising prices of goods

The Nation

BANGKOK:-- Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has ordered ministers overseeing business to get first-hand details on retail prices of food and other necessities due to more complaints over rising living costs.

Commerce Minister Boonsong Teriyaphirom will visit fresh food markets in Chiang Mai, while Deputy Commerce Minister Bhumi Saraphol will take a trip to Min Buri market in Bangkok.

Deputy Premier and Finance minister Kittirat Na-Ranong will visit On-Nuj fresh mart in Bangkok, while Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lekuthai will go to a big market in Bangkok Noi.

Other Cabinet ministers will visit fresh markets in Bangkok, Nakhon Pathom, Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan.

The premier previously blamed last year's massive flood as a major reason for higher prices of food and necessities.

Yesterday she said her government would try to boost incomes for people to solve this problem, while admitting that oil and other energy prices had to go up with market forces.

Last year's huge flood, which hit several provinces in the central region hard, has led to shortages of some products, resulting in higher prices.

However, she said that while prices of some raw materials had dropped, energy prices remained high, pushing up transport costs and retail prices.

To boost people's income, she said the government implemented rice mortgage and related schemes, while raising the minimum wage to Bt300 per day and the entry-level salary for college graduates who join the government to Bt15,000 per month.

The government also extended free public bus and train services for low-income earners.

On energy prices, she said, the government could not counter market forces - it had to reduce state subsidies. However, price adjustments would be gradual to minimise impacts on consumers.

For liquefied petroleum gas or LPG, used for cooking, the price would stay unchanged till the end of the year, but the transport sector would have to pay more for LPG.

The opposition Democrat Party said Yingluck had missed the point in

tackling the soaring price of food and other necessities. Spokesman Chavanont Intarakomalsut said it made no sense for the premier to blame nature as a major cause of more expensive goods.

-- The Nation 2012-05-06

[cloudhopper]

And to think just yesterday I thought it was all just a misconception.

[apetley]

And to think just yesterday I thought it was all just a misconception.

Confucious say "yesterdays misconception is todays reality check".

[noitom]

How are they going to check? These dudes never went shopping on their own in their lives.

[jalansanitwong]

Obviously PM Yingluck cannot visit supermarkets because she wouldnt know where they are. Imagine her standing at the top of the aisle at Big C or Lotus.

.........well ! ... is anyone going to serve me ??

....there must be some dark skinned peasants here to serve ....surely ????

[StefanBBK]

Prices are up, that is a fact. We used to spend about 1000 Baht when shopping at the local market. More or less buying the same things we now avarage 1200.

Checking the markets now does only make sense if you know prices from before, else they have nothing to compare.

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[GentlemanJim]

The lunatics really are running the asylum.

Scenario...Government Minister goes to a supermarket or fresh market complete with entourage of security, personal assistants, sycophants and 20 journalists and a TV crew. Minister says to rather overwhelmed old lady at the market stall "I want a bag of apples and some cabbage and some rice please", "How much will that be", "Oh no problem says the old lady, it's free to you, no charge" Ministers all go back to Yingluck and say 'the people have never had it so good, why are they complaining, the market traders are giving the food away for free'. Result,,,she tells us all again that we are imagining the rising costs.

[jackr]

Relatively, Thailand is becoming a rip-off.

[chrisinth]

The lunatics really are running the asylum.

Scenario...Government Minister goes to a supermarket or fresh market complete with entourage of security, personal assistants, sycophants and 20 journalists and a TV crew. Minister says to rather overwhelmed old lady at the market stall "I want a bag of apples and some cabbage and some rice please", "How much will that be", "Oh no problem says the old lady, it's free to you, no charge" Ministers all go back to Yingluck and say 'the people have never had it so good, why are they complaining, the market traders are giving the food away for free'. Result,,,she tells us all again that we are imagining the rising costs.

Nail on the head Jim!

How on earth can any polititian make an estimate by walking around a market? More to the point, why would a polititian make that estimate?

PR gone mental!!

[ginjag]

The lunatics really are running the asylum.

Scenario...Government Minister goes to a supermarket or fresh market complete with entourage of security, personal assistants, sycophants and 20 journalists and a TV crew. Minister says to rather overwhelmed old lady at the market stall "I want a bag of apples and some cabbage and some rice please", "How much will that be", "Oh no problem says the old lady, it's free to you, no charge" Ministers all go back to Yingluck and say 'the people have never had it so good, why are they complaining, the market traders are giving the food away for free'. Result,,,she tells us all again that we are imagining the rising costs.

Nail on the head Jim!

How on earth can any polititian make an estimate by walking around a market? More to the point, why would a polititian make that estimate?

PR gone mental!!

Sick people in charge of a sick society, what do you expect ???

[phl]

Ok, so off the went to check and...........????

1. If they see prices has gone up, ................?

2. If they see prices stayed the same,............?

Will they also visit supermarkets such as Big C, the ones who actually pay tax, correct wages and comply with most rules and regulations, will they check those also?

[allan michaud]

We are on a roll today. Demands for a proper earthquake prediction system for Thailand and now this.

Someone Beam me up, please!

[JayBangkok]

And to think just yesterday I thought it was all just a misconception.

I thought a condom was misconception

[letitbe]

and then what a bunch of clowns and Thais deserve them for voting for them and now all these robber barons will laugh all way to bank and poor never understand how they have been done over like a kipper

[JVichitt]

The poor couldn't have voted for a set of cronies more out of touch than these bozos.

They're just making visits for publicity. If they really cared about the situation they wouldn't have to announce that they are going to visit markets to inspect prices.

And 15,000 baht for new government workers with a bachelor's degree? Thai Rak Thai has been in control for nine months but I still keep seeing entry-level jobs with monthly salaries of 11,700 per month.

[phl]

The poor couldn't have voted for a set of cronies more out of touch than these bozos.

They're just making visits for publicity. If they really cared about the situation they wouldn't have to announce that they are going to visit markets to inspect prices.

And 15,000 baht for new government workers with a bachelor's degree? Thai Rak Thai has been in control for nine months but I still keep seeing entry-level jobs with monthly salaries of 11,700 per month.

they are ineffective for 11700, do you think they would improve if they get 15000?

[GentlemanJim]

The poor couldn't have voted for a set of cronies more out of touch than these bozos.

They're just making visits for publicity. If they really cared about the situation they wouldn't have to announce that they are going to visit markets to inspect prices.

And 15,000 baht for new government workers with a bachelor's degree? Thai Rak Thai has been in control for nine months but I still keep seeing entry-level jobs with monthly salaries of 11,700 per month.

they are ineffective for 11700, do you think they would improve if they get 15000?

No, but that is not what the Government promised. They promised 15000, they are even saying it is implemented and of course it is not.

[phl]

The poor couldn't have voted for a set of cronies more out of touch than these bozos.

They're just making visits for publicity. If they really cared about the situation they wouldn't have to announce that they are going to visit markets to inspect prices.

And 15,000 baht for new government workers with a bachelor's degree? Thai Rak Thai has been in control for nine months but I still keep seeing entry-level jobs with monthly salaries of 11,700 per month.

they are ineffective for 11700, do you think they would improve if they get 15000?

No, but that is not what the Government promised. They promised 15000, they are even saying it is implemented and of course it is not.

yes i am aware of that, i just do not see the relevance.

they promised many things and failed in most of them. This thread is about ministers going out to check the prices

they have forced businesses to put up wages by as much as 30% and expecting for businesses to swallow the costs?

[Thai at Heart]

But after claiming that prices are falling shouldn't they be boosting the money supply to avoid deflation? They are tying themselves in knots just like the flood by trying to lie to the people.

They can't have it both ways inflation is either increasing in rate or decreasing on rate, or stable. all situations need a measured response. This gobbledygook will catch them just like they pretended not to notice yhe floods.

[mca]

Thai Rak Thai has been in control for nine months

Finger on the pulse there mate.

[Skywalker69]

Relatively, Thailand is becoming a rip-off.

Relatively, your right.

[JVichitt]

Thai Rak Thai has been in control for nine months

Finger on the pulse there mate.

They've been banned and reincarnated so many times that I can't keep track of what they call themselves or how long their mandates last.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

I can't believe you guys are taking this seriously, even the most uneducated Thais realize this is a pure PR exercise.

[phl]

I can't believe you guys are taking this seriously, even the most uneducated Thais realize this is a pure PR exercise.

i did not realize the most uneducated Thai's knew the meaning of word PR

[GentlemanJim]

I can't believe you guys are taking this seriously, even the most uneducated Thais realize this is a pure PR exercise.

I think if you read the thread very few people can take it seriously, and I would not be too quick to claim what the most uneducated Thais think, as in order to empathize with them you would need to share the same level of understanding

[anterian]

This is obviously the time for another university poll

[JohnAllan]

Visiting a few fresh food markets is hardly going to give a true picture of prices, particularly when ministers turn up with their retinues, just to be given the grand - and planned - tour.

Energy prices fluctuate - as in they go up and down. If the transport companies, for example, learned [how] to hedge fuel costs and, say, evaluated their overall costs annually, then adjusted prices for the next year, based on those figures, the price fluctuations could be mitigated, and fairly incorporated into pricing.

As for Yingluck's claim to have boosted incomes: the rice mortgage and other populist schemes were targeted at specific groups - producers, not consumers - and are proving, as predicted, both inefficient and ineffective; the minimum wage has yet to be fully implemented, and will - again as predicted - result only in adding to inflation, unless increased - and useable - productivity accompanies the increased wages; and government employed college graduates again make up just one group.

[MILT]

When politicians and certain citizens have disposable money to spend prices are never a consideration unless the cost is cheap.

To visit all the markets and not consumer retail outlets is at best a PR job. These figures should be available in GDP growth, that should be available from the dear finance minister.

[phl]

the minimum wage has yet to be fully implemented, and will - again as predicted - result only in adding to inflation, unless increased - and useable - productivity accompanies the increased wages; and government employed college graduates again make up just one group.

Well, in my business i can confirm it has failed, miserably.

I was paying my staff above the minimum, so their salary was the new minimum, to keep it "good" for them i raised their salary and in return got even less work, more slack attitude and more sick days

[hellodolly]

How are they going to check? These dudes never went shopping on their own in their lives.

And if they did you can bet it was at a ultra expensive store. Probably suits or special foot wear. Wouldn't surprise me if after their farce finding mission they rush home for a one hour shower.