"We organise the market operation by distributing affordable bulk cooking oil to market merchants to allow them to resell the cooking oil in the government's retail price ceiling (HET)," the ministry's Directorate General of Domestic Trade Secretary I Gusti Ketut Astawa said in Semarang, Central Java, on Sunday.
A total of 18 tonnes of cooking oil have been distributed to Peterongan and Bulu markets, with each of the markets receiving nine tonnes of cooking oil while each of the merchants is allowed to purchase one jerry can of cooking oil to enable them to get the commodity, he said.
"The bulk cooking oil for this market operation is sold at Rp10,500 (US$0.73) for one kilogram. The merchants that purchase the bulk cooking oil can by then resell the product by observing the retail price ceiling of Rp12,800 (US$0.89) for one kilogram or Rp11,500 (US$0.80) for one litre," Astawa remarked.
The market operation price has provided the merchants with a sufficient profit margin that enables them to resell their product within the permitted retail price ceiling, he added.
"The traders who attempt to sell their cooking oil above the retail price ceiling will be penalised," the secretary affirmed.
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He said that the ministry has exerted its effort to ensure that the affordable cooking oil is supplied to traditional markets and sold within the price regulated by the government.
"The market operation will be continued by other distributors," he remarked.
Meanwhile, the Central Java Industry and Trade Office Head Arif Sambodo reiterated the local authority's commitment to coordinating and collaborating with the central government in stabilising cooking oil prices and stocks in the province.
"We will continue monitoring the cooking oil stocks to ensure that this affordable cooking oil can be distributed promptly," he said.
The industry and trade office has also collected the data of traditional market merchants that need the affordable cooking oil supply, he added.
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Translator: Wisnu Adhi N, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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