4 ms·

Production costs varying over the seasons or supply availability I can understand. I can't understand how /every/ UK supermarket chain made the same decision t

Production costs varying over the seasons or supply availability I can understand. I can't understand how /every/ UK supermarket chain made the same decision to decline the higher costs without asking myself if they spoke to each other about it. Emergent behaviour caused by racing to the bottom?

londons_explore 4y ago
Anti price gouging laws prevent them jacking up prices when there is tight supply. They literally can't offer to pay more.
- msie 4y ago
  And yet there is price inflation. How is that any different?
- HPsquared 4y ago
  What laws? Would be interesting to see some analysis of this.
- notahacker 4y ago
  This is nonsense. There is no UK "price gouging" legislation applicable to paying more to import foodstuffs
  - londons_explore 4y ago
    The law is against 'unfair business practices', but the Competition and Markets Authority took action when businesses raised the price of hand sanitizer when there was lots of demand in 2020. Now businesses generally can't make big price shifts due to increased demand or constrained supply. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-and-trade-bodies-joint-statement-against-price-gouging/joint-statement-against-price-gouging https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-and-trade-bod...
    - notahacker 4y ago
      The CMA investigated whether firms were stockpiling hand sanitizer and making excessive profits on it by creating artificial shortages, at a time when hand sanitizer was being promoted as an essential good. As your link acknowledges, they then promptly closed all the cases without further action. Paying more to suppliers to import a particular non-essential foodstuff in a year in which most food prices have risen is even less likely to invite action. If fuel prices can legally double overnight and fuel vendors make larger markups as global prices stabilise without the CMA batting an eyelid, it's quite hard to pretend that the CMA is the obstacle to us having access to the same food supply chains as European supermarkets...
- benj111 4y ago
  Except that isn't a law. Although if they were all shown to be acting in concert, not buying tomatoes in order to get a better price. That would be illegal.

londons_explore 4y ago

Anti price gouging laws prevent them jacking up prices when there is tight supply. They literally can't offer to pay more.

msie 4y ago
And yet there is price inflation. How is that any different?
HPsquared 4y ago
What laws? Would be interesting to see some analysis of this.
notahacker 4y ago
This is nonsense. There is no UK "price gouging" legislation applicable to paying more to import foodstuffs
- londons_explore 4y ago
  The law is against 'unfair business practices', but the Competition and Markets Authority took action when businesses raised the price of hand sanitizer when there was lots of demand in 2020. Now businesses generally can't make big price shifts due to increased demand or constrained supply. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-and-trade-bodies-joint-statement-against-price-gouging/joint-statement-against-price-gouging https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-and-trade-bod...
  - notahacker 4y ago
    The CMA investigated whether firms were stockpiling hand sanitizer and making excessive profits on it by creating artificial shortages, at a time when hand sanitizer was being promoted as an essential good. As your link acknowledges, they then promptly closed all the cases without further action. Paying more to suppliers to import a particular non-essential foodstuff in a year in which most food prices have risen is even less likely to invite action. If fuel prices can legally double overnight and fuel vendors make larger markups as global prices stabilise without the CMA batting an eyelid, it's quite hard to pretend that the CMA is the obstacle to us having access to the same food supply chains as European supermarkets...
benj111 4y ago
Except that isn't a law. Although if they were all shown to be acting in concert, not buying tomatoes in order to get a better price. That would be illegal.