Markup and Margin Calculator (Jamaica)

Jamaica has no general price ceiling on ordinary goods, but the Trade Act gives the Minister of Commerce the power to impose one. Under section 8, an order can control the price at which a class of goods is sold wholesale or retail, regulate how it is distributed or sold, require traders to report the elements of their cost and selling price, and cap hire rates for goods listed in the Second Schedule. Goods regulated under the sugar, agricultural produce, agricultural marketing, coconut, coffee, cocoa and banana Acts are outside these orders.

Where an order fixes a price, section 8 allows the Minister to require a legible list of the controlled prices to be kept on display in a conspicuous place where the goods are sold, and to require prices to be marked on the goods or their container. The Consumer Protection Act (section 17) gives the same power to require traders to supply price information and mark prices on goods. For goods with no fixed price, the Minister may issue a pricing code that sets out how prices should be set or raised and when the Prices Commission may oppose or approve an increase.

The rule most likely to affect a shop is the disaster-period rule. Once the Prime Minister declares a threatened or disaster area, the Trade Act bars selling "necessary goods" above the price charged before the emergency. Necessary goods include food and drink, toiletries and cleaning products, medicine and medical supplies, building supplies, and emergency items such as batteries, candles and first-aid kits. The Consumer Affairs Commission enforces it. A markup calculator is a useful check before setting a price in such a period, because a rise that cannot be explained by cost is what the Commission investigates.