Distributors of propane gas billed industrial users an additional RD$2.00 per gallon. News reports indicate they did so in order to increase their earnings. The Ministry of Industry and Commerce is the organization in charge of setting intermediary profit margins and has not authorized an increase above the RD$13.00 set price. The Listín Diario business section points out that the increase will affect the cost of bread in the DR. More so, the newspaper article says that this could be an attempt on behalf of the propane gas distributors to pressure the government to increase their profit margins. The government recently gave into pressures made by the gasoline station owners.
