Georgetown: Housing and Water Minister, Irfaan Ali, who also holds the position as Minister of Industry and Commerce has emphatically declared that Government will not allow the burden of price increases to hamper the country’s thriving construction sector.
Minister Ali made this bold assertion in the wake of Tuesday’s announcement by Trinidad Cement Limited (TCL) of a 5% hike in its ex-factory price for Portland-Pozzolan cement.
The company said in a statement that the increase will take effect from May 1 as a result of increased production costs.
The release added that this price movement forms part of a deliberate pricing strategy, which was designed by TGI to minimize the impact of a large one-off increase on the market.
In an invited comment yesterday, TCL’s General Manager (Trinidad) Mr. Satnarine Bachew confirmed the increase and explained further that the hike in prices was not confined to Guyana.
“There has been a 5% increase but it’s not just in Guyana…it is all across the Region and it is being done in different phases with varying increases in different areas,” Mr. Bachew explained.
He noted too that current adjustment is largely predicated on a price change by the parent company which has been continuously faced with substantial increases in major cost components.
The TCL General Manager was quick to note too that in some parts of Trinidad, the price has increased by as much 9.5% this year.
Even with this announcement, the company has reiterated its “strong support” of Guyana’s developmental goals, and will maintain its offer of a twenty percent (20%) discount for first time home owners under the Government’s low-income earners housing initiative, which TCL has been supporting since 2010.
Consumer support
Meanwhile, many suppliers and customers have lamented over the recent announcement of the price increase by TCL, which will undoubtedly affect the construction sector, a major component of Guyana’s economic growth.
Despite efforts to pacify the Guyanese suppliers and consumers with the “mere 5% price increase”, local companies are pledging to stand by their customers and hold the price for the commodity.
Additionally, local producer of West Indian Cement has confirmed that his price will remain the same despite the TCL increase.
In the wake of this recent development, Minister Ali, pointed to the impact of this and noted that this increase in price for the commodity will have to be met with some “policy intervention”.
He said, “We are awaiting the full analysis of the situation, subsequent to which we will advise the Foreign Affairs Minister who will determine what position to take or decide whether the market should be open to extra regional companies.”
Ali impressed upon the fact that regionally, Guyana has the most aggressive, progressive construction sector and has pledged that efforts will be made to address the situation to ease the burden of this latest price increase.
“We believe firmly that the market should not only be protected in times of shortages but that there should be some fairness and competitiveness in the pricing of commodities. Increases in product cost and raw materials should be balanced with the competitiveness of the product,” the Housing and Water Minister emphasised.
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