Ministry of Economy launches national platform for monitoring prices of essential commodities to enhance government oversight of markets and real-time price tracking

Platform integrates a vast network of consumer cooperatives, hypermarkets, and major retail chains that collectively represent over 90 per cent of domestic trade in essential consumer goods across the seven emirates

The Ministry of Economy announced the launch of the national digital platform for monitoring prices of essential commodities, aimed at tracking and monitoring the prices of essential consumer goods specified under the new pricing policy adopted nationwide. The initiative aligns with Cabinet Decision No. 120 of 2022 regulating prices of essential consumer goods, which consists of nine commodities: cooking oil, eggs, dairy products, rice, sugar, poultry, legumes, bread, and wheat.

The platform offers a real-time price tracking system for commodities across a wide range of consumer cooperatives and major retail outlets in the country. This enables the Ministry of Economy and local regulatory authorities to monitor actual prices of essential goods in various locations at the same time, facilitating oversight, comparison, and verification to ensure compliance with the price ceilings set by the Ministry under the approved Pricing Policy.

H.E. Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy, emphasized that the UAE, guided by the directives of its wise leadership, has successfully established a comprehensive legislative and regulatory framework for consumer protection. It ensures a safe and stable consumer environment, fosters the growth of the retail and wholesale sectors, and upholds best practices in commercial oversight, strengthening consumer protection across the UAE. These efforts support the national economy while enhancing its competitiveness and sustainability, in line with the objectives of the ‘We the UAE 2031’ vision.

H.E. Bin Touq said: "The launch of the new platform forms part of the Ministry of Economy’s continuing efforts, in collaboration with its partners, to provide all necessary tools, technologies, and enablers to ensure the highest levels of transparency and efficiency in monitoring consumer goods prices and protecting consumers. The initiative enhances consumer confidence in government oversight while stimulating local consumption, driving economic growth, and boosting market competitiveness." H.E. added that the platform leverages cutting-edge technologies to enhance governance, transparency, and monitoring in the country’s commodities market, in line with the UAE’s newly adopted pricing policy for essential consumer goods.

H.E. continued: "The launch of this platform coincides with the declaration of 2025 as the ‘Year of Community.’ The platform supports the objectives of this initiative by strengthening the capabilities of relevant authorities to enforce approved policies, ensuring a secure and fair environment for consumers when purchasing essential goods. It guarantees fair pricing, protects society from sudden price hikes, regulates inflation rates, and combats monopolistic practices and price manipulation. These efforts will benefit all segments of society, including both citizens and residents, safeguarding their interests and rights."

New regulatory platform powered by advanced technology

The platform integrates a vast network of consumer cooperatives, hypermarkets, and major retail chains that collectively represent over 90 per cent of domestic trade in essential consumer goods across the seven emirates. This broad reach reinforces its pivotal role in strengthening government oversight, enforcing relevant laws and policies, and enhancing transparency within the national consumer protection framework. Furthermore, it plays a crucial role in stabilizing prices, safeguarding consumer rights, and preventing manipulation or monopolistic practices in real time. By harnessing cutting-edge technology and global best practices, the platform enhances regulatory tools for the Ministry of Economy and its partners across all emirates.

It employs advanced data collection and analysis technologies to provide transparent, real-time databases accessible to regulatory stakeholders at the Ministry of Economy and local departments. These databases offer insights into pricing trends and the movement of essential consumer goods. A live price tracking system, coupled with automated alerts, identifies goods and outlets exceeding price caps, enabling swift detection of monopolistic practices or price manipulation. Additionally, an integrated mapping feature allows instant location identification, empowering authorities to take immediate action, ensure market integrity, and enhance price forecasting. This strengthens their ability to proactively prevent disruptions and intervene swiftly to maintain consumer market stability.

Furthermore, the platform contributes to monitoring the quality of essential consumer goods in the markets, ensuring their compliance with approved health and commercial standards and specifications. It also enables Ministry officials and economic departments to establish price duration curves and track changes by product or origin, compare prices between outlets across different emirates and between branches of the same outlet. Additionally, the platform generates in-depth reports and visual analytics, which enhances its significance as a strategic digital tool in the government’s efforts to mitigate inflation and stabilize consumer prices.

The launch of the platform follows the implementation of the new pricing policy in the beginning of this year, under Cabinet Resolution No. 120 of 2022 on consumer goods pricing rules and controls. The policy designates nine essential consumer products-including cooking oil, eggs, dairy products, rice, sugar, poultry, legumes, bread, and wheat-along with related subcategories, whose prices cannot be increased without prior approval from the Ministry. Meanwhile, all other goods and products in the UAE market remain subject to supply and demand dynamics, as well as market mechanisms.