The government will expand discount support for agricultural, livestock and fishery products and increase supply through tariff quotas to address food price instability stemming from the prolonged Middle East war. It also decided to review whether to lift the petroleum price ceiling system, which has contributed to consumer price stability, if international oil prices stabilize.
The government held a "Special Task Force of Relevant Ministers for Managing Livelihood Prices" at the Government Complex Seoul on Wednesday, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Koo Yun-cheol, to discuss summer price stabilization measures including these contents.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs decided to expand tariff quotas on pork and chicken and additionally pursue an "emergency tariff quota for the second half" within this month. The tariff quota is a system that lowers tariffs on specific items by up to 40 percentage points, creating an incentive to supply the relevant goods at low prices. The agriculture ministry plans to apply tariff quotas to 12,000 tons of processing pork by the end of this year, 30,000 tons of chicken for processing and dining out by July, and 4,000 tons of egg products by the end of this month, to disperse processing and dining-out demand.
Discounts on agricultural, livestock and fishery products by the government and producer organizations will also be supported by up to 50 percent. The government plans to additionally import 20 million fresh eggs from the United States and Thailand during June and July, and to diversify import sources by bringing in Brazilian eggs for the first time. For major fish species such as pollock and mackerel, 8,000 tons of government stockpiles will be released at a 30 to 40 percent discount from retail prices. A summer agricultural and livestock supply-demand stabilization team will operate until mid-month, pursuing preemptive supply-demand management and price stabilization in preparation for heatwaves and heavy rain.
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, judging that seafood prices could rise if deaths of farmed seafood increase due to high water temperatures and concentrated rainfall in summer, decided to supply the largest-ever scale of high-water-temperature response equipment. The budget for supplying high-water-temperature response equipment increased 31 percent from 5.8 billion won last year to 7.6 billion won this year, and the "emergency release procedure guidelines," which release seafood into the sea before they die from high water temperatures, were upgraded, with the relevant notice to be enacted within this month.
The government decided to determine the timing for lifting the petroleum price ceiling system while watching the Middle East situation and international oil price trends. Kang Ki-ryong, Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said at a preliminary briefing on the 2nd, "If we judge that supply-demand instability has been resolved as the Strait of Hormuz reopens for passage, or that international oil prices have structurally stabilized, we plan to review whether to lift the system."
The government will prepare a notice containing the principles and standards for loss compensation following the implementation of the price ceiling system, and plans to launch a maximum-price settlement committee within this month to discuss settlement methods. In addition, it will additionally select "Good Gas Stations" among gas stations that have contributed to price stability, and provide additional incentives such as rewards.
The government also plans to respond strictly to unfair price practices such as price gouging and collusion conducted during regional festivals and the vacation season. Following a joint intensive inspection of lodging facilities for hygiene and price collusion by relevant ministries on the 8th and 9th of this month, it will also amend the law to introduce a voluntary rate reporting system for the lodging industry. It will also pursue an amendment to the Fair Trade Commission notice within this month, which would require lodging operators to compensate consumers 200 percent of the deposit and the canceled lodging fee if they unilaterally cancel reservations without justifiable reasons.
