The common objective is to break down inflation
Budapest, 14 April 2023 -, Judit Varga, Minister of Justice and Csaba Balázs Rigó, President of the Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH), agreed at their meeting in Budapest on Friday that the Ministry of Justice will also join the working group coordinating the implementation of the online price monitoring database. The parties agreed on the need to develop new systems that serve the interests of consumers and contribute to the increase of transparency and competition in the market in order to curb inflation.
On 23 March, the Hungarian Competition Authority and the Ministry of Economic Development announced that, they will set up a joint working group to develop an online price monitoring database and related web application for the public, and to develop the necessary legislative framework as soon as possible.
The parties expect the system to enhance transparency - in line with the interests of consumers - to contribute to increasing competition in the market and preventing overpricing, thus helping to brake inflation down to single digit by the end of the year.
The working group coordinating the implementation of the online price monitoring database is already working on the creation of the regulatory environment necessary for the system to operate. Experts from the Ministry of Justice will also join this work, Judit Varga, Minister of Justice, and Csaba Balázs Rigó, President of the GVH, agreed on Friday.
At the meeting, the Parties agreed that the Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for the professional management of consumer protection and the GVH share a common objective: breaking down inflation as soon as possible, which requires coordinated action.
At the meeting, Judit Varga emphasized that "In order to break down sanction inflation and protect families and the economy, we are working to further strengthen and broaden the role of consumer protection. Targeted consumer protection monitorings will therefore continue after Easter as well. Our aim is to shed light on those who try to cheat on foodstuff with price cap or overprice certain products, in the interests of consumers and honest businesses. The Ministry of Justice and the GVH are working together to do everything we can to protect the interests of consumers and fair business."
At the meeting, Judit Varga pointed out that by empowering the public and consumers, encouraging informed choices and increasing competition, overpricing can be stopped and inflation can be further reduced.
Csaba Balázs Rigó, President of the GVH, highlighted "I am not surprised that the race for consumers has started. This would have been justified much earlier. The GVH will continue to use all the means at its disposal to ensure that competition is further strengthened. This can be enhanced by the comparability of consumer prices, which can have a moderating effect on prices in the longer term and can also increase consumer awareness. We are working with our allies to brake inflation down to single digits in Hungary by the end of the year."
Csaba Balázs Rigó also said that the GVH will soon launch a draft report on the accelerated sector inquiry into the milk and dairy products market for public debate. The GVH's experts examined which factors in the whole value chain - from producers, processors and traders to consumers - may have contributed to the increase in inflation and whether any market intervention is justified to protect Hungarian consumers and producers.