Discount events extended by a week, through Sept. 30
2,000 tons more seafood, including pollack and squid, to be supplied
On-site checks within three days of price-gouging reports
The government will inject an additional 90 billion won ($67.1 million) from available funds into discount subsidies for agricultural, livestock and fishery products ahead of chuseok. The discount events will be extended by a week, through Sept. 30, and the purchase limit on agricultural and livestock products will be lifted during the event period.
The government announced the supplementary measures to stabilize prices for chuseok during a meeting on Wednesday. The session doubled as a price policy meeting and a task force on curbing chuseok price gouging, presided over by Kang Gi-ryong, assistant minister at the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
The government had previously announced a record 103 billion won in discount subsidies as part of its chuseok policy, and will now add 90 billion won from available funds. The agricultural and livestock product discount events, originally slated to run from Thursday through Sept. 23, will be extended by a week to Sept. 30, covering the chuseok holiday.
During the event period, consumers can buy agricultural and livestock products at discounted prices with no per-person purchase limit. Under the previous plan, discounts were capped at 20,000 won per person each week.
The government will also increase seafood supply. It will add 2,000 tons to the existing 20,000 tons of stockpiled seafood. The addition includes 1,300 tons of pollack, 300 tons of squid, 300 tons of yellow croaker and 100 tons of dried yellow croaker. That will bring the total supply to 22,000 tons, about three times the normal level.
The government will also widen the discount rate on stockpiled seafood, from a maximum of 40 percent to 50 percent. The discounted seafood will be supplied through wholesale markets, hypermarkets and traditional markets.
The number of companies participating in the processed food discount event will expand from about 20 to about 70. From Tuesday through Oct. 5, the number of discounted items will increase by 64 percent compared with before, and the government plans to further expand the discount items and rates in consultation with the industry.
The government said the burden of preparing chuseok ancestral rite tables has eased compared with last year, thanks to its price stabilization measures. According to a survey by the Korea Consumer Federation, the average cost of ritual food items for a four-person household stood at 313,089 won three weeks before chuseok. That was down 2.3 percent from 320,370 won during the same period last year.
The government will also step up crackdowns on price gouging. From Monday through Sept. 22, related ministries will jointly conduct intensive inspections of restaurants and lodging facilities in markets and tourist areas. If a price-gouging report is filed, officials will conduct an on-site inspection within three days.
The government will also inform businesses on-site about newly strengthened sanctions standards for lodging, restaurants and taxis. It plans to revise the Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards by the end of the year. Under the revision, lodging businesses that cancel reservations without justifiable reason can be fined up to 200 percent of the deposit. During the Onnuri Gift Certificate refund event at traditional markets, running from Sept. 16 to Sept. 20, the government will also focus on inspecting price-gouging practices.
The government will also continue investigations and crackdowns on activities that harm people's livelihoods.
Through the pan-government joint response team launched Aug. 28, the government has so far uncovered illegal and unfair practices worth 546.8 billion won at 10 companies. It has imposed 8.5 billion won in fines and collected 58.6 billion won in evaded taxes. It plans to continue intensive investigations and strict punishment of livelihood-harming activities that undermine fair market order, to prevent price instability during chuseok.
fact0514@heraldcorp.com
