Azerbaijan, Baku / Trend corr S. Babayeva / The decision to remove VAT for imported grain recently by the Azerbaijani Government was a necessary measure but not enough to lower the prices for bread, according to the Chairman of the Azerbaijani Free Consumers Union, Eyyub Huseynov.
According to Huseynov, the measures taken was not conducive to cutting bread prices, for before the removal of VAT prices the growth had made up 10%, but today it is 30%. "The removal of VAT has completely put the grain segment of the local market into the hands of monopolists," Huseynov said. He reported that several mills stopped operating in the Azerbaijani Ganja City.
Huseynov noted that with the lack of consumer policy, the prices for flour would continue to increase, almost by 30%. He felt that only one way to prevent the increase in prices was the stimulation of local production and support being given to the producers by the Government. "The core of the problem is that the Azerbaijani Government has not a single consumer policy," he noted. Moreover, in Huseynov's opinion, Azerbaijan's entering the World Trade Organization (WTO) can stabilize the situation.
The average price for one loaf in Azerbaijan makes up AZN 0.3.