The meeting pointed out that the State Council attaches great importance to price stability. Since last year, it has adopted a series of effective measures to promote the development of production and ensure the supply of the market and the lives of low-income people. At present, the production of pigs is recovering, the sown area of ​​food and oil crops has steadily increased, the country’s food stocks are abundant, and the supply of major industrial consumer goods is in excess of demand, and it can fully guarantee market supply. However, the prices of primary products such as crude oil and grain in the international market are still rising, and the pressure on domestic prices is higher. It is worth noting that in some localities, a few companies have colluded in price increases, hoarding, and raising prices; some companies have deliberately spread price information, disrupted market order, and pushed up prices.
The meeting emphasized that the socialist market economy is an economy ruled by law, and behavior that violates laws and regulations and disrupts market order must not be left unchecked. All localities and relevant departments must adhere to the principle of “preventing economic growth from overheating to overheating and preventing price from structural uplift to obvious inflationâ€. While vigorously developing production and effectively guaranteeing supply, the "Price Law" strengthens the management, supervision and necessary control of prices, maintains normal market price order, and safeguards the interests of consumers. First, we must stabilize government pricing and government guidance prices. Recently, the prices of refined oil, natural gas, and electricity cannot be adjusted, and the prices of utilities, such as gas supply, water supply, heating, and urban public transport, as well as school tuition and accommodation fees, cannot be raised, and the price of medical services can be kept stable. The prices of fertilizers such as urea and phosphate fertilizers must also remain stable. If they need to be adjusted due to rising costs, they must be reported to the government's price authority for approval. Second, we must strengthen supervision over the price of essential necessities. According to the provisions of the price law, temporary price intervention measures have recently been adopted to raise the price of a people's daily necessities production enterprise that has reached a certain scale, and to reach a certain scale of daily necessities wholesale and retail enterprises to implement a price adjustment filing system. The government's pricing authority should monitor the changes in the prices of important goods and services, strengthen price and cost investigations, encourage enterprises to set prices reasonably, and pay attention to safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises. Third, we must strictly enforce the law. It is necessary to severely investigate and punish each other for collusion, manipulation of market prices, fabrication, dissemination of price increases, high prices, illegal profits, and violations of laws and regulations that do not comply with regulations such as price increase filing and filing procedures. Fourth, we must strengthen education. Enterprises must not only pursue economic interests, but also consciously assume social responsibility. We must follow the pricing principles of fairness, legitimacy, honesty and credit to provide consumers with reasonably priced goods and services. Industry associations should strengthen self-discipline, strengthen management, comply with price laws and regulations, and actively guide enterprises to operate legally to jointly maintain market price stability. We must properly play the role of price supervision and guidance in news media.
The revised “Provisions on Administrative Penalties for Price Violations†has increased the penalties for price violations, increased penalties for the illegal conduct of industry associations, such as collusion, manipulation of market prices, and other important goods and services. When the price rises significantly or is likely to rise significantly, the procedure for the operator to report the reasons for the price change is stipulated.
The meeting demanded that all regions and relevant departments should attach great importance to it, strengthen leadership, and ensure the implementation of various policies and measures to stabilize prices. Prior to the Spring Festival, special inspections shall be conducted on the prices of basic necessities such as grain, oil, meat, and liquefied petroleum gas, and fertilizers and other agricultural market prices to regulate the price behavior and ensure market supply.
Urea and other fertilizer prices to be stable
On the 9th, Premier Wen Jiabao of the State Council presided over the executive meeting of the State Council to study and deploy and maintain price stability, and made a decision to amend the "Provisions on Administrative Penalties for Price Illegal Behavior."