BOBRUISK, 17 June (BelTA) – The rise in prices is mostly due to external factors, and no one is allowed to cash in on it, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he talked to the staff of the Belshina company in Bobruisk, BelTA has learned.
The head of state pointed to the ongoing redivision of the world that began during the coronavirus pandemic. Belarus has successfully overcome the pandemic by following its own COVID-19 response strategy. This strategy proved to be right, unlike strategies of many countries that introduced massive lockdowns. “When they took stock of the results, some in the West started crying,” the Belarusian leader said.
Coronavirus, strict quarantine and increased healthcare costs delivered a serious blow to the economies of a number of countries, and they did not come up with anything better than starting to print new banknotes. “Remember, I warned you that it would end up bad. Dollars were printed in trillions, which resulted in rampant inflation on all sides,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted. “Of course, we were also affected by this. If metal and crude rubber rise in price abroad, the products that we make from them will become more expensive, too. Therefore, external inflation has seriously impacted us as well. We have been resisting, we are trying to keep prices as low as possible, because it is impossible to freeze prices. If we freeze prices for tires, Belshina will suspend operations the following day and will not operate at a profit. No one is allowed to take advantage of the situation to line their pockets - neither private businesses nor state-run enterprises. Therefore, you must clearly understand: a lot of things do not depend on us. High prices are coming to us from abroad, because we buy a lot of raw materials, and we also export the bulk of products,” the president added.
