KUWAIT CITY, Oct 9: The price of rice in Kuwait increased by five percent this week and might escalate by as much as 40 percent in the coming weeks due to the massive flooding in Pakistan and China, reports Al-Seyassah daily quoting officials in charge of foodstuff importing companies in Kuwait.
The officials also cited the decision of India to direct most of its rice production to Pakistan, in which people are suffering from severe hunger, as another reason behind the price hike.

Tareq Al-Sebae, the financial manager of Al-Lugain Foodstuff Establishment which imports rice, pointed out the whole world will soon face a rice crisis due to the floods in Pakistan and China.

Meanwhile, the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources attributed the price hike to the latest developments in the international and regional markets. The authority contended Kuwait is part of the international system, which is affected by whatever happens in the global market. Due to the open economic policy, the foodstuff and other consumable items are negatively affected as per the law of supply and demand, the authority added.

Even if the price hike issue is considered an international phenomenon, the Kuwaiti Cabinet still took several steps to address the problem. Through decision number 844/2008, which was issued on Aug 14, 2008, the Cabinet formed a committee consisting of representatives from ministries and other concerned authorities to ensure ample food supply in the country and limit the effect of the global price hike on the local market.

Furthermore, Head of Kuwait Fishermen Union Mohammed Al-Arefan asked the authority to allow the fishermen to catch ‘maide’ fish within three miles, according to the specified criteria. He also urged the authority to instruct the fish resources inspectors to refrain from issuing random citations and not to withdraw the license of fishermen without any valid reason. He claimed these malpractices have negatively affected the fishing sector and increased the prices of fish in the market.

In a related development, Ministry of Commerce and Industry Undersecretary Rasheed Al-Tabtabaei said the ministry has not observed any exaggerated price increase in the local market, clarifying the exorbitant price hike is limited to certain items like the tomatoes due to the shortage of supply, reports Al-Rai daily.
Al-Tabtabaei confirmed the price of tomato in the local market started to decline two days ago. He also denied reports on the possible increase in the prices of basic commodities, such as rice, milk, sugar and oil, because these products are subsidized by the government.

As far as fish is concerned, several people have expressed satisfaction over the low prices of fish in the local market despite the skyrocketing prices of other food items, disclosing the price of a kilogram of Kuwaiti zubaidi decreased to KD 7 and KD 8 compared to KD 10 a month ago, reports Al-Seyassah daily.
Abu Ali, a Kuwaiti, lamented the prices of basic commodities in the country have continued to escalate but the prices of fish have either remained the same or declined over the last days. He cited as an example the price of a kilogram of large Iranian zubaidi, which decreased from KD 7 to KD 5. 
Mohammad Abu Al-Kalam, a fish seller, admitted the demand for fish is low compared to the previous months, so this caused the decline in prices.  He said a medium Iranian zubaidi used to cost KD 3.5 but it is only KD 2.5 now, while Hamour currently costs between KD 3 to KD 3.5 compared to KD 4.5 or KD 5 before.

Meanwhile, Al-Anba daily has reported that the Kuwait Fishermen Union (KFU) is said to have suspended fishing until the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) addresses the problems of the fishermen.

Sources admitted relations between the authority and the union have been strained due to endless disagreements over a number of issues.

KFU Chairperson Mohammad Al-Oraifan asserted the union has outrightly rejected the decisions of the authority. He attributed the rising prices of fish to these decisions, which include a ban on the use of yarn in fishing according to the agreement between GCC nations, but allows the import of fish from countries that have not implemented the directive. 

Al-Oraifan pointed out the Kuwaiti territorial waters are full of large fish, yet the local fishermen have been deprived of their right to benefit from this resource. He lamented the fishermen in other countries in the region have been greatly benefiting from the fish export to Kuwait. He challenged the PAAAFR officials to an open debate on television to reveal the truth.

In a related development, sources revealed the Ministry of Commerce and Industry will meet the PAAAFR and General Customs Department officials this week to discuss reasons behind the escalating prices of fish in the local market.

Sources said the meeting will focus on the need to allow the influx of imported fish into the Kuwaiti market, realizing that shortage of supply while demand is high is a major factor for the price hike.