Circular No. 7127/TC/TCT regarding the management of cement prices

LETTER

OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE NO. 7127 TC/TCT DATED JUNE 27, 2002
REGARDING MANAGEMENT OF CEMENT PRICES

Dear: - Ministry of Construction, Ministry of Trade

- People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities
During the recent period, due to a rapid increase in cement demand in some localities, production and consumption have not met market needs. Some business entities have taken advantage of this situation by selling cement at prices higher than the ceiling set by the state. To contribute to stabilizing the market and maintaining price stability, the Ministry of Finance requests the Ministry of Construction, the Ministry of Trade, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities to direct inspections on the implementation of cement sales prices, handle violations by entities that fail to comply with regulations, specifically:

1. Inspect production and trading units regarding their compliance with cement sale prices and price display requirements as stipulated in Decision No. 104/1999/QĐ-BVGCP dated November 3, 1999 of the Government Price Control Board and Circular Jointly Issued by the Government Price Control Board, Ministry of Trade, and Ministry of Construction No. 03/1999/TTLT-BVGCP-BTM-BXD dated April 19, 1999 concerning business mechanisms and price management for cement.

2. Upon inspection, identify and address violations related to improper price display and sales at prices higher than the displayed prices by imposing administrative penalties on pricing violations according to Decree No. 44/2000/NĐ-CP dated September 1, 2000 of the Government regarding administrative penalties for violations in the field of pricing. For entities selling cement at a price higher than the maximum ceiling, determine the quantity and amount exceeding the state-set ceiling and recover all excess amounts according to Decree No. 44/2000/NĐ-CP dated September 1, 2000 of the Government regarding administrative penalties for violations in the field of pricing. For cases where invoices are not issued or incorrectly issued, impose administrative penalties on invoice issuance, management, and use according to Decision No. 885/1998/QĐ-BTC dated July 16, 1998 of the Minister of Finance regarding regulations for issuing, managing, and using sales invoices. If tax evasion is discovered, handle violations according to the Tax Law.

3. Direct production and supply units to take measures to increase production and consumption while guiding and promoting awareness among trading entities to avoid speculative price manipulation. For construction projects where cement purchase prices exceed state-set prices in final accounts, only consider settlement for maximum costs equal to the state ceiling price.

3. Direct production and supply units of cement to take measures to boost production and sales, while guiding and promoting publicity to ensure that business establishments and consumers remain calm and avoid speculative price manipulation. For construction projects, when finalizing accounts for purchasing cement at a higher price than the prescribed rate, only consider settling costs for cement purchases up to the maximum ceiling price set by the State.