UK supermarkets prepare to impose 'price ceiling' call
It has been reported that British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will ask supermarkets to limit the price of basic food products. It has been reported that British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will ask retailers to impose price ceilings on basic food products such as milk and bread as part of the fight against the cost of living. According to the British Telegraph, Sunak's team has begun working on a plan to ensure that the "lowest possible" price ceilings are applied to some basic food products. The plan, which is reported to have been developed based on a similar practice in France, will be based on the voluntary participation of supermarkets. In this context, Sunak will ask supermarkets to freeze the prices of basic food products such as bread and milk in order to control food prices, which have recently become the main source of inflation, and to prevent the cost of living. According to data released last week in the UK, annual inflation fell less than expected in April to 8.7 percent. Inflation was 10.1 percent in March. Despite the decrease in inflation, food inflation continued to be high at 19.1 percent. Food inflation, which was 19.2 percent in March, had reached its highest level in the last 45 years. UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt also stated that food prices were still rising too rapidly, saying, "Food inflation is at a worryingly high level." While the British government aims to reduce inflation to 2 percent and keep it at that level, the Bank of England increased interest rates for the 12th time in a row at its meeting on May 11 as part of the fight against inflation, raising interest from 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent.