Economy Minister, Davor Filipovic, said on Wednesday "a decision would be made soon" on whether "black lists would be compiled" relating to price increases following the introduction of the euro, the state news platform Hina reported.

“The government will use every instrument available to curb the increases in prices of food and other products, because there is no reason for those increases,” Hina cited Filipovic as saying in an interview for state radio.

Filipovic said the government was “intensively discussing black lists,” and that six consumer associations were monitoring prices and could publish on their websites the names “of those who are not working for the benefit of consumers but solely for their own profit.” He said the Economy Ministry would consider the option of “blacklisting all those working to the detriment of citizens” and “thus fanning inflation.”

Filipovic said the government would “send a message” over the next few days “to change the bad feeling citizens have” because of the price increases following the introduction of the euro. “We are sending a message to everyone, both retailers and others in the chain, that they must curb their appetites.”

The minister said that although the government had intervened in the price of electricity and was controlling fuel prices, prices of products continued to increase, reiterating that “this will no longer be tolerated.”

Filipovic recalled that the prices of nine basic food products were capped early in September, and that it was agreed with producers and retailers then that priced would be slashed by almost 30 percent. He reiterated that retailers “should understand that citizens come first.”

The minister said “the hospitality guild claimed that retailers had raised prices by 13 percent.”

Asked if Croatians, due to the membership in the border-free Schengen Area, would now shop more in neighboring Slovenia, where food prices are up to 20 percent lower than in Croatia, Filipovic said he did not expect that. Rather, he expects the government’s upcoming steps to result in lower prices and lower inflation.

Asked if the aid scheme for households and companies would be extended, he said the government “would make a decision based on developments in the next couple of months.”

“If it’s necessary to continue with those measures, we will firmly stand by Croatian citizens and companies after 31 March.”

He said that in “calibrating a new set of measures,” the government would consider “how some enterprises behaved while the scheme was in place,” reiterating that the government “could not be expected to stand by companies which kept increasing prices.”