Industrial and commercial establishments began working again on Monday, the Ministry of Trade and Industry has announced, assuring the public that the transportation of goods countrywide was "back to normal."
Head of Internal Trade Mohammed Abu Shadi told Al-Masry Al-Youm that commercial chains had begun operating "as usual," which has helped restore a degree of stability, especially in regards to prices and the availability of supplies.
He pointed out that central monitoring services at the ministry had received several complaints regarding abrupt price hikes in recent days, especially for mobile-phone recharge cards and cigarettes, but that, as transportation returned to normal on Monday, prices had retreated.
Abu Shadi went on to say that the ministry had not received any notification regarding the price of steel and cement for the month of February, pointing out that most steel companies had informed the ministry that their prices had not changed since January, when average wholesale per-ton steel prices stood at LE4400.
Abu Shadi said there were large inventories of steel and cement in Cairo and Alexandria, in contrast to other governorates that have witnessed increased demand for both, which has caused prices to rise. The cost of steel and cement in these governorates remains unknown, said Abu Shadi.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
