Minister of Industry and Commerce Karl Samuda, says he will be pushing for businesses, to pass on some of the benefits to consumers, following the appreciation of the Jamaican dollar.

The Jamaican dollar started appreciating in December last year. It was the first year since 2010 that the currency had re-valued.

This, due largely to the bank of Jamaica’s foreign exchange intervention, and trading tool Bfxitt, launched in August.

Mr. Samuda says, over the years, consumers are made to feel burdened, when the Jamaican dollar is depreciating, but the benefits are not passed on when it is the opposite.

However, Chief Executive Officer at the Consumer Affairs Commission, Dolsie Allen, explains that some businesses have given reasons for not reducing the prices of goods, in light of the dollar revaluing.

Chief among them being the time line in which the dollar has started appreciating.