Leanid Zaika: There are no prices, but extortion of money in Belarus

Belarusians will have to use electric bicycles if motor fuel prices continue to grow.

Economist Leanid Zaika, the head of the analytical centre Strategy, spoke to charter97.org about the record increase in fuel prices in Belarus.

“Firstly, fuel, gas and utility prices should have been reduced by 20% after we joined the Customs Union. The price growth means officials use the antiscientific approach in building the Customs Union. Secondly, prices grow in accordance with the simple logic – the logic of extortion of money. There are no prices in Belarus. There are only appointed indexes of extortion,” the expert thinks.

The analysts adds the duty allowing vehicles to use roads can also be called “extortion of money by non-market means”.

“In the situation when fuel prices are increasing Belarusians will soon have to buy electric bicycles, because they have the lowest energy consumption per kilometre. The car fleet will also change. Vehicles using more than 8 litres per 100 kilometres should become a thing of the past,” Leanid Zaika noted.

We remind that consumer prices of AI-95 petrol grew by record 20% in Belarus in 2013. Fuel prices in Russia went up 5.9%, similar to the price increase in Kazakhstan.