Food prices in Belarus will stabilize by mid-year

April 26, Minsk /Lyudmila Sats - BELTA/. Food prices in Belarus will stabilize by mid-year. This was stated today to journalists by Economy Minister Nikolai Snopkov, a BELTA correspondent reports. The minister explained that food prices in Belarus are, firstly, speculative in nature, secondly, devaluational in nature, and thirdly, influenced by external factors. That is, if global food prices, prices for basic commodities, are rising, then, naturally, prices for individual food products in Belarus also increase. But at the same time, there are economic laws that state that a product should cost as much as a buyer is willing to pay. "We are confident that by mid-year prices will stabilize and find their equilibrium, including influencing the consumer price index as a whole," Nikolai Snopkov said. -0-