BAKU, Azerbaijan, Nov. 27
By Fakhri Vakilov - Trend:
By the end of 2021, Uzbekistan’s authorities plan to complete the consistent liberalization of regulated prices, as stated by Chairman of Uzbekistan’s Central Bank Mamarizo Nurmuratov, Trend reports citing Uzbek media.
“In 2020-2021, we must achieve liberalization of all prices that remained in the part of regulation by the state,” Nurmuratov told reporters.
According to Uzbekistan’s Deputy Minister of Finance Ahadbek Haydarov, in the near future, price liberalization will also affect RON-80 gasoline, electricity and gas.
Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev instructed before February 1, 2020 to submit for approval to the Cabinet of Ministers a schedule of liberalization of regulated prices (tariffs) in 2020–2021, taking into account the impact on inflation targets.
“This does not mean that utilities prices will rise every year. We do not expect growth beyond inflation,” said the head of the Central Bank.
Nurmuratov also emphasized that the high rate of inflation that has been observed in the country over the past two years is a temporary phenomenon.
“When price liberalization is completed, there will be no strong fundamental basis for high inflation. In any case, we do not have the right to allow high inflation,” Nurmuratov added.
Earlier, the Central Bank stated that the government plans to move away from the practice of planned annual increases in utility prices over time.
“Utility prices are always rising twice a year. Uzbekistan will gradually move away from planned increases,” said director of the Central Bank's monetary policy department Behzod Hamraev.
According to him, this will become possible when free market prices for utilities will be formed in the country. As an example, Hamraev cited the transition to free pricing of RON-91 gasoline, which from this year is determined through exchange trading, and not by the state.
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