Antigen test kits sold at double the price, price gouging must be punished
[4] Compiled from: Red Star News
[4] On December 10, the Beijing Municipal Market Regulation Bureau reported a case of investigating the high-price sale of antigen test kits, intending to issue a warning and an administrative penalty of 200,000 yuan to the party involved.
Case review
[5] On December 7, the Chaoyang District Market Regulation Bureau received a report and initiated an investigation into the high-price sale of antigen test kits by the First Chaoyang Branch of Beijing Rehabilitation Home Medical Supplies Co., Ltd. The investigation found that from December 1, 2022, to December 7, 2022, the party sold Fosun COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) antigen test kits (colloidal gold method, specification: 25 tests per box) on the Meituan platform, priced at 229 yuan per box, with purchase unit prices of 61.25 yuan, 67.5 yuan, and 75 yuan per box. Due to varying promotional discounts on the Meituan platform during different periods, the actual selling prices were 179 yuan, 216.5 yuan, and 229 yuan per box, with a maximum price-to-cost margin of 273.9%, far exceeding that of similar products in the surrounding market during the same period.
[6] The above actions of the party violated Article 14, Item (3) of the Price Law of the People's Republic of China, constituting the illegal act of price gouging. In accordance with relevant laws and regulations, the Chaoyang District Market Regulation Bureau has served the party with a "Notice of Administrative Penalty," intending to issue a warning and an administrative penalty of 200,000 yuan.
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[1] Price Law of the People's Republic of China
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Article 14
Business operators shall not engage in the following unfair pricing practices:
……
(3) Fabricating or spreading price increase information, driving up prices, or causing excessive price increases for goods;
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[1] The author's perspective
[2] Since the COVID-19 pandemic, policies have been continuously adjusted according to actual conditions, yet there are always those who seek to profit from national crises. From masks initially to daily necessities later, and now to antigen test kits, these are essential items for pandemic response. While they may be in short supply at times, it is unreasonable for sellers to arbitrarily raise prices. This not only plunders the wealth of the people but also disrupts the order of the market economy. If people blindly follow the trend and flood into pandemic-related industries, once supply becomes severely saturated, it will cause widespread property losses.
[3] Moreover, as we are currently in the early stage of policy relaxation, people's mindsets are still adapting. If unscrupulous merchants arbitrarily raise prices while people stock up on pandemic supplies, it will inevitably cause panic and lead to social instability. Therefore, moderate price increases due to rising costs are understandable, but if prices are inflated to profiteer, relevant authorities must strictly investigate and prevent such phenomena from disrupting society.
