Mexico City, Jun. 18 - Mexico will freeze prices on some 150 basic foods, ranging from flour to cooking oil and beans and chiles, to ease the impact of rising global food costs on households and the economy, President Felipe Calderon said Wednesday.
Calderon, who recently lowered import tariffs on some key foodstuffs, said industry federation Concamin had agreed to freeze prices on foods until the end of the year.
"With this decision by Concamin, the prices of more than 150 products will freeze from today and until the end of the year," Calderon told a news conference with the head of the industry group.
The Mexican government last month reduced import tariffs to zero on a number of foodstuffs and cut prices of home-grown rice to 10 percent below international market prices as part of a package of measures to ease the effect of rising food prices on consumers.
Like many countries, Mexico is feeling the effects of soaring prices of basic foods due to the increased use of biofuels and the growing demand for grains to feed a booming Asia, compounded by droughts and market speculation.
Economists are betting that Mexico's central bank will raise interest rates later this year and even as soon as this week's monetary policy meeting. A central bank poll earlier this month showed expectations for 2008 headline inflation have risen.
Mexican inflation in the 12 months through mid-May was 4.83 percent, while food costs surged 9.22 percent annually.