The Competition Development and Consumer Rights Protection Committee has set an upper limit on the price of propane at the Republic's commodity and raw materials exchange. This was reported by Spot here.
It is noted that, as per the committee's instruction on November 5th, a limit (spread) of 20 percent relative to the seller's initial price was introduced to curb the rise in liquefied gas prices starting from Wednesday.
In the last two trading days, the price of propane increased by more than 15 percent and exceeded 10.1 million Uzbek sums per ton on Tuesday. As highlighted by economist Otabek Bakirov, during the exchange trades on November 5th, the price of propane per ton was less than that of Ai-80 automobile gasoline, which left it behind at 10 million Uzbek sums.
The rise in prices could be attributed to a decrease in supply. If the volume of propane listed on the exchange exceeded 2,000 tons on November 1st, it had decreased by 30 percent to 1,400 tons by November 5th.
According to Spot sources, on November 6th, the exchange price of propane sharply decreased, as the initial price of liquefied gas was significantly below the market price. Thus, the high-level prices artificially maintain the exchange quotes, limiting competition, as all participants may offer the maximum authorized price.
