Trade Minister to investigate rush for cement, price-gouging

Trade Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon is calling on retail hardware owners not to take advantage of the public amid reports of an unexpected and unwelcome rise in the price of cement within the past two weeks. She has also promised to investigate these reports.

On social media, commentators condemned smaller retail hardwares banking on the shortage of cement to extort customers into paying double the usual price.

A bag of cement is around $40 but in the last two weeks, customers have taken to social media complaining about paying as much as $100 per bag.

The price rocketed days after the Prime Minister announced construction was one of the sectors that would be closed until May 23.

On May 8, Trinidad Cement Ltd (TCL) immediately ceased operation and has not been facilitating sales or local commercial activity. The country's second cement supplier Hard Rock Cement also temporarily stopped all sale and distribution.

On May 10, hardware Abel Building Solutions closed all its manufacturing and distribution facilities. On May 15, the major hardware chain Bhagwansingh and Dansteel closed all of its branches.

In less than a week many hardwares ran out of cement and smaller retail hardwares drastically increased the price. Ogeer’s Hardware in San Juan and Ropnarine Hardware in Caroni told Newsday they were completely out of cement.

General Hardware Supplies Ltd told Newsday it hadn’t had cement in over two weeks. The last time the store bought cement it had to pay more than usual.

In Tobago, a bag of cement, which is normally $55, increased to $80 and in some cases over $100 because of the price-gouging in Trinidad.

Owner of D #1 Hardware in Scarborough, Tobago, Demi Cruickshank told Newsday Tobago hasn’t had cement anywhere on the island in over two weeks.

He said suppliers in Trinidad are offering to sell one bag for up to $85. When the bags arrive in Tobago, hardware stores had no choice but to sell them for almost $100.

“This won’t make any sense, so we didn’t take that deal,” Cruickshank said. “Right now a lot of customers in Tobago hunting around for cement, even though there shouldn’t be any construction. TCL closed the same day the prime minister announced the restrictions on the construction sector, so none of the hardwares got a chance to stockpile any cement. So whoever had cement sold it out and the hardwares in Tobago bought from those in Trinidad, for over $70 a bag.”

Gopee-Scoon, contacted on Tuesday, said she was unaware of price-gouging in cement but would investigate any and all complaints.

She told Newsday there shouldn’t be any major construction work happening, and called on retailers not to take advantage of customers hoping to do minor emergency home repairs during this time.

“I'm disappointed in the retailers that they will seek to extort high prices from consumers at this time... That's really unscrupulous behaviour by the retailers. I don't think that is coming from the wholesalers at all but the retailers, understanding there are larger hardwares that have closed, and therefore those in need of it come to them.

“At this time I can't control the behaviour of those retailers. What I do monitor are the wholesalers and their manufacturer, and I was told that is not the case, the high prices are not emanating from them."

While condemning the move as wrong, she added, “Consumers should really recognise that this is not the time for doing adjustments to their homes. I think people ought to be home and not engaged in these little construction activities. Construction, on the whole, is not allowed.

"So, to me, if you are doing something urgent at your home that I suppose you will go to hardwares and buy these items...So I don't know that people would be supporting those prices.”

When contacted, the managing director of Hard Rock Cement told Newsday there is nothing cement factory owners can do to prevent or stop the price-gouging.

"Honestly I can't give advice, when it comes to that part of it. It's simple economics of simply demand and supply which all has to do in market forces. There's nothing that could be done at this stage.

"The mere fact that we cannot supply the hardware with cement there is a shortage of cement right now and that is what resulted in the hike of prices of cement, at this point in time. Because hardwares have been calling, customers have been calling."

TCL is expected to respond to the matter on Wednesday.