FINANCE Minister Michalis Sarris yesterday sought to allay fears among euro-shy Cypriots by unveiling the proposed Fair Pricing Code, which aims to minimise profiteering up to and during the currency changeover.
Latest polls still show over 50 per cent of Cypriots oppose euro entry in January 1 next year, and over 80 per cent fear being ripped off.
But Sarris and other officials, plus the Chambers of Commerce and the Consumers’ Association, say everything will be in place to minimise profiteering.
Sarris said the Fair Pricing Code, which is optional, was one of four “pillars” being worked on for the smooth introduction of the single currency.
It is being promoted in co-operation with the Commerce Ministry, the Consumers’ Association and the Chambers of Commerce KEVE.
“All companies that will participate in the code will have a special logo, which will be hung in a prominent place so that consumers know the specific business has adopted the code,” Sarris told a news conference in Nicosia.
“Also, those companies will be inspected on a constant basis. In case of breaches, they will be fined and be forced to withdraw the logo.”
A ‘Name and Shame’ list containing the names of offenders will also be published for the consumer’s benefit.
The code will be in force from July 10, the day the Cyprus pound will be locked to the euro, until July 10 next year, Sarris said. He said it was in the interests of all businesses to adopt it.
It is not designed totally to prevent price increases, but to deal with what will be considered unjustified increases, as prices may rise due to annual inflation, and some businesses may pass on the cost of their own changeover to the consumer.
Sarris predicted that once the euro was introduced in Cyprus and people were able to make comparisons with other countries, prices would drop.
Andreas Charalambous, the Director of Finance at the Ministry, said the adoption of the code was good publicity for businesses, since the list of those participating would be published, allowing consumers to choose these outlets as trustworthy.
“The business which adopts the code will acquire a comparative advantage over those who don’t,” he said.
Commenting on how an “unjustified increase” would be judged, he said the inflation rate, currently 2.2 per cent, would be used as a guide.
“To say an increase is unjustifiably large, we will use double the rate of inflation,” he said. ‘We will have two levels of unjustified increases, the category of 5-10 per cent and those over ten per cent.
He said the government would ask those in both categories for explanations and then take action if necessary.
Consumers’ Association president Petros Markou said a list of 30 everyday items had already been drawn up, and that this would be monitored on a monthly basis and published.
Some businesses and supermarkets on the island have already promised to round-down their prices around one per cent.
The Ministry’s guidelines suggest as an example that after the locking of the currencies and the introduction of dual pricing, prices such as 3.174 should be rounded down to 3.17 and 6.348 be rounded up to 6.35.
Subscribers to the code are also obliged to keep on prominent display the six-digit conversion rate between the euro and the Cyprus pound, and will be obliged to offer in-store help and information to customers to aid them in understanding the conversion and to facilitate price comparisons.
Businesses who wish to subscribe to the code must submit their applications to the Finance Ministry by October 10.
KEVE, the Employers’ Federation (OEV) and shopkeepers’ union POVEK all called on their members to subscribe to the code, saying it was in their own interests.
n Information on the code can be obtained on www.euro.cy or freephone 80002008.
