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Graeme Samuel

Supermarket pile-on is going to cause real harm

If the supermarkets are guilty, then throw the book at them. But it’s populist politics that is really at work here.

Graeme SamuelBusiness professor and former regulator

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Who could be surprised? We have an election looming in the next nine months. We have sticky inflation and the resultant painful cost of living and interest rates. So someone needs to be blamed.

Supermarkets are the latest in the conga line of culprits blamed for the cost-of-living crisis. First, the Reserve Bank copped it briefly. Next in the blame game queue are the supermarkets – the duopoly of Coles and Woolworths – let’s not even acknowledge the presence of Aldi, Costco, IGA and other independents, and the ubiquitous Amazon.

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Graeme Samuel AC is a professor in the Monash Business School, Chair of Airlines for Australia and New Zealand, and a former chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

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    Original URL: https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/supermarket-pile-on-is-going-to-cause-real-harm-20240923-p5kcsw