The recently created “war room” addressing the issue of commodity price hikes, particularly for pork and palm oil, has suggested that pork and palm oil prices are starting to fall.
The announcement was made by Boonyarit Kalayanamit, permanent secretary to the Ministry of Commerce. He said red meat costs at hypermarkets have dropped to between 164 and 170 baht per kilogram. The price is significantly less than the previous range of 187 to over 200 baht per kilogram. Chicken prices also appear to be stabilizing, drumsticks with thighs offered in malls for 65 baht per kilogram and at wet markets for around 70-75 baht per kilogram.
Additionally, Boonyarit said the price of bottled palm oil is on the downward trajectory and prices will eventually fall as farmers continue to supply the market with new products.
He did, however, remind consumers that the present inventory is derived from stocks. This suggests that prices should remain constant at their current level for the next few weeks before showing a noticeable decrease. Palm oil is now priced between 64 and 65 baht at convenience stores and 61-62 baht in malls.
Additionally, the permanent secretary said officials are continuing to monitor cold storage and slaughterhouses for any discrepancies.
He reminded cold storage businesses that keep more than 5 metric tons of pork in their weekly inventory to report to the Department of Internal Trade.
Recent inspections discovered 12 violators in six provinces who failed to file their weekly reports.
