Article 92Supplement v1, p. 92

COMMERCIAL LAWS SUPPLEMENT

fresh, dried or canned fish and other marine products;

fresh pork, beef and poultry meat; fresh eggs; potable

water in bottles and containers; fresh and processed milk;

fresh vegetables and fruits; locally manufactured instant

noodles; coffee; sugar; cooking oil; salt; laundry soap and

detergents;

firewood;

charcoal;

household

liquefied

petroleum

gas

(LPG)

and

kerosene;

candles;

drugs

classified as essential by the Department of Health and

such other goods as may be included under Section 4 of

this Act; (as amended by RA No 10623)

(2) "Buffer fund" means a contingent fund in the budget

of the implementing agency which shall not be used in

its normal or regular operations but only for purposes

provided for in this Act;

(3)

"Implementing

agency"

means

the

department,

agency or office of the Government which has jurisdiction

over a basic necessity or prime commodity as defined in

this Act, which shall be:

(a) The Department of Agriculture, with reference to

agricultural crops, fish and other marine products, fresh

meat, fresh poultry and dairy products, fertilizers, and

other farm inputs;

(b) The Department of Health, with reference to drugs;

(c)

The

Department

of

Environment

and

Natural

Resources, with reference to wood and other forest

products; and

(d) The Department of Trade and Industry, with reference

to all other basic necessities and prime commodities.

(4) "Panic-buying" is the abnormal phenomenon where

consumers buy basic necessities and prime commodities

grossly in excess of their normal requirement resulting in

undue shortages of such goods to the prejudice of less

privileged consumers;

(5) "Person" means a natural person or juridical person;

(6) "Prevailing price" means the average price at which

any basic necessity has been sold in a given time within a

month from the occurrence of any of the conditions

enumerated under Section 6 of this Act;

(7) "Price ceiling" means the maximum price at which any

basic necessity or prime commodity may be sold to the

general public; and

(8) "Prime commodities" are goods not considered as

basic necessities but are essential to consumers in times

of any of the cases provided under Section 7 of this Act

such as, but not limited to, flour; dried, processed or

canned pork, beef and poultry meat; dairy products not

falling under basic necessities; onions, garlic, vinegar,

patis, soy sauce; toilet soap; fertilizer, pesticides and

herbicides;

poultry,

livestock

and

fishery

feeds

and

veterinary products; paper; school supplies; nipa shingles;

sawali; cement; clinker; GI sheets; hollow blocks; plywood;

plyboard; construction nails; batteries; electrical supplies;

light bulbs; steel wire; all drugs not classified as essential

drugs by the Department of Health and such other goods

as may be included under Section 4 of this Act. (as

amended by RA No 10623)

SECTION 4. Inclusion or Exclusion from the Coverage of

this Act . — Upon petition of the concerned parties or

motu proprio action from the concerned agency of the

Price Coordinating Council and after public hearing, the

implementing agency, with the approval of the President,

may include in the definition of basic necessities or prime

commodities types and brands of the goods or may

exclude from the coverage of this Act, types or brands of

the goods included in the definition of basic necessities

and prime commodities, which may be deemed as

nonessential goods or luxury goods: Provided, That, any

type or brand so excluded may be reinstated by the

implementing

agency

during

occasions

of

acute

shortage in the supply of the basic necessity or prime

commodity to which the excluded type or brand used to

belong. (as amended by RA No 10623)

SECTION 5. Illegal Acts of Price Manipulation . — Without

prejudice to the provisions of existing laws on goods not

covered by this Act, it shall be unlawful for any person

habitually

engaged

in

the

production,

manufacture,

importation, storage, transport, distribution, sale or other

methods

of

disposition

of

goods to engage in the

following acts of price manipulation of the price of any

basic necessity or prime commodity.

(1) Hoarding, which is the undue accumulation by a

person or combination of persons of any basic or prime

commodity beyond his or their normal inventory levels or

the unreasonable limitation or refusal to dispose of, sell or

distribute the stocks of any basic necessity of prime

commodity to the general public or the unjustified taking

out of any basic necessity or prime commodity from the

channels of reproduction, trade, commerce and industry.

There shall be prima facie evidence of hoarding when a

person

has

stocks

of

any

basic

necessity or prime

commodity fifty percent (50%) higher than his usual

inventory and unreasonably limits, refuses or fails to sell

the same to the general public at the time of discovery of

the

stocks.

The

determination

of

a

person's

usual

inventory

shall

be

reckoned

from

the

third

month

immediately preceding before the discovery of the stocks

in case the person has been engaged in the business for

at least three (3) months; otherwise, it shall be reckoned

from the time he started his business.

(2) Profiteering, which is the sale or offering for sale of any

basic necessity or prime commodity at a price grossly in

excess of its true worth. There shall be prima facie

evidence of profiteering whenever a basic necessity or

prime commodity being sold: (a) has no price tag; (b) is

misrepresented as to its weight or measurement; (c) is

adulterated or diluted; or (d) whenever a person raises the

price of any basic necessity or prime commodity he sells

or offers for sale to the general public by more than ten

percent (10%) of its price in the immediately preceding

month: Provided , That, in the case of agricultural crops,

fresh fish, fresh marine products, and other seasonal

products covered by this Act and as determined by the

implementing agency, the prima facie provisions shall

not apply; and

(3) Cartel, which is any combination of or agreement

between

two

(2)

or

more

persons

engaged in the

production,

manufacture,

processing, storage, supply,

distribution, marketing, sale or disposition of any basic

necessity or prime commodity designed to artificially and

unreasonably increase or manipulate its price. There shall

be prima facie evidence of engaging in a cartel whenever

two

(2)

or

more

persons

or

business

enterprises

competing for the same market and dealing in the same

basic necessity or prime commodity, perform uniform or

complementary acts among themselves which tend to

bring about artificial and unreasonable increase in the

price of any basic necessity or prime commodity or when

they simultaneously and unreasonably increase prices on

their competing products thereby lessening competition

among themselves.

SECTION 6. Automatic Price Control . — Unless otherwise

declared by the President, prices of basic necessities in an

area shall automatically be frozen at their prevailing

prices or placed under automatic price control whenever:

(1) That area is proclaimed or declared a disaster area or

under a state of calamity;

(2) That area is declared under an emergency;

(3)

The

privilege

of

the

writ

of

habeas

corpus

is

suspended in that area;

(4) That area is placed under martial law;

(5) That area is declared to be in a state of rebellion; or

(6) A state of war is declared in that area.

If the prevailing price of any basic necessity is excessive or

unreasonable,

the

implementing

agency

may

recommend to the President the imposition of a price

ceiling for the sale of the basic necessity at a price other

than its prevailing price.

Unless sooner lifted by the President, price control of

basic necessities under this section shall remain effective

© Compiled by RGL

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