Every year, on the eve of �schools�reopening, significant growth has been seen in the price of school stationery in market. But with the school stationery price doubled, this year people are suffering from the high prices more than the other years. �

This year, although those who are responsible for market regulation announced that they are trying to overcome overcharging and other violations, many retailers have increased prices of their goods due to sanctions, sharp fluctuations in the dollar price, and business problems, especially the increasing price of paper.

Thus, high stationery prices in the last days before the start of the new school year has brought worry and stress to most people, especially low income families.

Although, government holds provincial exhibitions to keep prices down and support low-income families, many of the consumers are dissatisfied with the quality of the goods supplied to public.

Many stationery retailers say that foreign goods are much more popular because of having better quality and matching the taste of buyers.

This year, however, the Ministry of Education has banned using foreign supplies in schools.

Deputy Director of Elementary Education was quoted as saying that since the new school year, the use of non-Iranian and non-Islamic stationery is prohibited in schools. Manufacturers should consider that their products be incompatible with the rich Iranian-Islamic culture and civilization, she added.

Criticizing the stationery's high price on the eve of the new academic year, one Member of Parliament said that high prices may be partly due to sanctions against Iran and expensive currency, but if the government sets the commodity prices logically based on the annual inflation, we will not see uncontrollable high prices.

Some retailers refer to expensive currency as the main reason of high price stationery. They say that since the price of dollar has increased over the past year, stationery prices will certainly increase too.

And as some informed sources said, only 10 percent of stationery are produced domestically, so dollar will decide the fate of this commodity market.

But many believed that the increasing price of paper is the main cause of high price stationery. And, it was said that economic mafia, black market, and hoarding are among the most important reasons of increasing price of paper.

Stating that paper price is exponentially increasing, director of a publishing house in Fars province said jobber paper traders hoard papers in their stores and this reduces the supplies and increases the prices.

Moreover, paper is not among those goods which are included in reference currency for that reason its price is higher than other commodities.

However, some of those involved in this area stated paper has been expensive all over the world and has nothing to do with Iran, emphasizing that increasing price of paper is a global burden.