The Ministry of Trade has revealed the registration of 585 commercial violations during the first seven months of the current year, part of its efforts to regulate markets and enhance stability. This coincides with the Ministry's affirmation of relative stability
currently observed in local markets. Riyadh Al-Mousawi, Director General of the Commercial and Financial Control Department at the Ministry, explained that oversight operations from the beginning of the current year until the end of July resulted in detecting 585 diverse violations.
These included 114 instances related to expired materials in the capital and other governorates, and 72 cases involving prohibited-to-trade items. The department also recorded 249 cases of price inflation, in addition to 35 cases of commercial fraud and 115 work-related
violations. Al-Mousawi added that commercial fraud manifests as taking items from the ration or food basket, repackaging them with new labels, and selling them as imported goods, citing examples like rice, lentils, and legumes. The number of individuals apprehended in cooperation
with security agencies reached 541 offenders. He emphasized that these measures contributed to achieving market stability, or at least providing a clearer understanding of its prices and available materials. On another note, Al-Mousawi indicated that recent reports revealed a shortage of
certain materials within the market, including some from the ration and food basket. For instance, rice is unavailable in some governorates due to insufficient distribution, in addition to scarcity in some imported goods. Nevertheless, the Ministry confirmed that its daily
follow-ups and regular statistics enable precise monitoring of market movement, confirming the control by relevant authorities over the overall market, which enjoys relative stability.
