NewsWhore
08-09-2006, 07:00 PM
DR1 recently reported that there was a sugar shortage. Now Diario Libre is reporting that sugar prices are rising by as much as 30% to 50%. They attribute the higher prices to lower production at farm level and an increase in demand at international level. While the former is bad news, the fact that the Dominican Republic has received an increased quota for the preferential United States market is certainly good news for local producers.
The "official" price of a pound of sugar in the local markets is 'fixed' at RD$8.82 but it is currently selling for RD$13, while brown sugar ("crema") is selling for RD$10 per pound. Local authorities have not yet decided whether to authorize the import of sugar to cover the local demand. Only the La Romana sugar mill is currently supplying local markets. According to Diario Libre, only the privately owned sugar mills, La Romana and Vicini Group, have managed to increase production, while of the ten state owned sugar mills only two are in production, and one of them is under private administration.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#9)
The "official" price of a pound of sugar in the local markets is 'fixed' at RD$8.82 but it is currently selling for RD$13, while brown sugar ("crema") is selling for RD$10 per pound. Local authorities have not yet decided whether to authorize the import of sugar to cover the local demand. Only the La Romana sugar mill is currently supplying local markets. According to Diario Libre, only the privately owned sugar mills, La Romana and Vicini Group, have managed to increase production, while of the ten state owned sugar mills only two are in production, and one of them is under private administration.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#9)