The Namibia Competition Commission (NaCC) says it is studying the findings made by the South African Competition Commission on the pricing of cooking oil in the neighbouring country and will decide if it warrants an investigation on the Namibian market.
This follows a damning finding in South Africa that price hikes effected on the product in the country were ‘opportunistic’.
A South African Competition Commission investigation found that sunflower oil processor prices increased by 72% in 2022, which was far more than the price of sunflower seeds, which have remained relatively stable.
This comes as cooking oil, which previously retailed at around N$50 per 2-litre bottles in Namibia, has now skyrocketed to an average of N$90, with the product predominantly imported from South Africa.
“Given the interrelationship between the two economies, the Commission is of the view that any findings in this regard will be of importance and therefore, should be considered,” NaCC Spokesperson Dina //Gowases told The Brief.
She said although no local investigation had been commissioned regarding the ‘opportunistic’ pricing of cooking oil and other commodities, “the Commission is, however, aware of what is happening in South Africa as far as the matter is concerned”.
Global cooking oil prices have rocketed in response to the invasion of Ukraine, which disrupted sunflower oil exports from the important Black Sea region.
Together, Russia and Ukraine supply more than 75% of global sunflower oil to international markets. Further, Ukraine supplies about 30% of the world’s maize and wheat, while Russia supplies about 20%.
This comes as the inflation rate for the food subcategory increased by 8.4% in July 2022 compared to 6.5% registered during the same period of the preceding year, largely driven by the increase in the prices of oils and fats, which increased from 17.4% to 26.5%.
Prices for oils and fats according to the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) increased by 26.5% in July 2022 compared to 17.4% registered during the same period a year earlier, with cooking fats increasing from 11.3% to 23.2% and cooking oil up from 28.8% to 37.1%.
