Podgorica, (MINA-BUSINESS) – The Institute of Economic Sciences has called on the Government and the Ministry of Economic Development to launch the process of adopting amendments to the Consumer Protection Law without delay, introducing an obligation for retailers to display reference prices.

“The window for preventive action is closing, and prices are already rising,” the Institute warned.

It explained that the initiative was first launched in August last year and that a concrete proposal for legislative amendments was submitted again in September this year as part of a public consultation.

The Institute recalled that, according to data from Monstat, annual inflation reached 5.2 percent in September, up from 4.5 percent in August.

“Food and non-alcoholic beverage prices rose by 0.6 percent in September, and these developments are particularly concerning ahead of the announced increase in minimum wages under the Government’s Euro Model, which is expected to take effect in January,” the Institute said.

It added that living standards were determined not only by income levels but also by actual purchasing power. Consequently, increases in nominal wages would fail to deliver the expected results if prices rose at the same time.

“That is why we insist on the urgent introduction of reference prices. The idea is for retailers to display, alongside the current retail price, the price that applied on a clearly specified earlier date. If a product cost €2 on the reference date and now costs €2.50, consumers can immediately see that its price has increased by 25 percent. There would be no need to keep old receipts, photograph shelves or guess how much something used to cost,” the Institute said.