SINGAPORE: The good news for those who eat out: Hawker food prices have continued to stabilise, with fewer stall owners opting to raise charges following the 2 percentage-point hike in the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Of 1,271 stalls surveyed between July 21 and Aug 3 by the Department of Statistics, only 0.9 per cent had upped their prices, compared to 3.8 per cent in the preceding two weeks.
Those who did were mainly hawkers in the north-east of Singapore, where 4.4 per cent of the 183 stalls surveyed raised prices.
This was followed by stalls in the eastern (0.9 per cent) and western (0.5 per cent) sectors.
Interestingly, the central area, which had the most number of stalls participating in the survey - 452 - saw the smallest proportion of stalls hiking prices, just 0.2 per cent.
The Committee Against Profiteering (CAP) said it had observed a general downward trend in the past month and urged stall owners to continue keeping prices steady.
The Department of Statistics will continue to monitor hawker prices closely.
Meanwhile, the CAP received 22 complaints about GST profiteering this month as of Aug 8, in addition to the 104 last month and another 49 in the first six months of the year - making 175 cases in total.
Of these, 73 cases have been closed. And 104 involved restaurant chains or local stalls, while chain marts and pharmacies were among the other merchants involved.
Consumers who encounter instances of GST profiteering should email CAP at
feedback@cap.org.sg, or call 6884 4478/6884 4327. - TODAY/ym
Fewer hawkers raising prices: survey 
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