Govt will continue rice price control operation<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta Chapter of the National Logistics
\nAgency (Dolog Jaya) has said that the ongoing market operation
\naimed at controlling the price of rice will continue until prices
\nreturned to normal.<\/p>\n
Councilor Abdulgani H. Abdullah, the chairman of the City
\nCouncil's Commission B on the economy, quoted Dolog Jaya chief
\nArifin Hidayat as saying that the ongoing operation would last
\nuntil supply at the city markets remained stable without the
\nagency's help.<\/p>\n
"The agency will stop the operation soon after prices in the
\nmarket return to normal," said Abdulgani, who along with other
\nmembers of Commission B and Dolog Jaya visited the Cipinang
\nWholesale Market in East Jakarta on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
During a two week market operation, begun on July 16, Dolog
\nJaya has released around 500 tons of rice a day, or a total of
\n6,260 tons to the Cipinang Wholesale Market.<\/p>\n
Abdulgani said Jakarta needs 2,000 to 3,000 tons of rice every
\nday, 1,800 tons of which are supplied through the Cipinang
\nMarket.<\/p>\n
Dolog Jaya is expecting 16,000 tons from South Sulawesi and
\nanother 3,000 tons from West Java this month, which, in addition
\nto the present stock of 73,141 tons, will be adequate to meet the
\ndemand of Jakartans for 46 days.<\/p>\n
Demand for rice at the wholesale market remained high and the
\nprice was still slightly higher for almost all types of rice than
\nthe government ceiling price.<\/p>\n
The consumer price of Dolog's normal quality rice at the
\nCipinang market was Rp 725 (33 U.S. cents) per kilogram, up Rp 25
\nfrom last week, but none of the prices of other types of rice
\nexceeded Rp 1,000 as reported earlier.<\/p>\n
Wholesaler Robianto of PT. Romerta, who has a yellow cloth
\nbanner embossed with "Dolog Jaya Rice, Rp 710 per kilogram"
\nposted in front of his rice stall, said he bought Dolog's normal
\nquality rice at Rp 685 (32 U.S. cents) per kilogram and sold it
\nat Rp 710 to retailers.<\/p>\n
Retailers then sold it at Rp 725 per kilogram to consumers.<\/p>\n
Robianto said that he bought high quality rice directly from
\nfarmers in Karawang, West Java's largest rice supplier, and from
\nanother West Java rice producer in Cirebon for Rp 710 per
\nkilogram and sold it to retailers at Rp 780.<\/p>\n
Declined<\/p>\n
Iswadi, another rice wholesaler in the Cipinang market who
\nreceives ten tons of rice from Dolog every day, said that
\ncompared to last week, demand for rice from retailers had
\ndeclined by 30 percent this week.<\/p>\n
To meet his clients' demand for high quality rice, Iswadi
\nbought it from producers in Karawang and Indramayu, West Java,
\nand Muncul and Pamanukan, East Java.<\/p>\n
"I bought it (high quality rice) at Rp 800 and sold it at Rp
\n820, down Rp 30 from a week ago," he said, adding that he had,
\nuntil yesterday, sold rice from Indramayu at Rp 790, also down Rp
\n30 from its selling price four days ago.<\/p>\n
When asked whether rice prices would increase again, Iswadi
\nsaid that it depended on how long the current drought continued.<\/p>\n
Rice prices throughout the country have increased due to the
\ndrought, forcing the National Logistics Agency to launch a market
\noperation to control the price of the food staple. (arf)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-will-continue-rice-price-control-operation-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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