By James Wells

SYDNEY: Panasonic Australia consumer electronics director, Paul Reid, says he will “almost certainly” increase prices on 1 February and claims he has never seen an increase in the price of televisions in over 20 years.

“We can say that we will almost certainly be undertaking price increases in the new year,” Reid told Current.com.au

“The timing is still to be decided as this is still under discussion, but it is most likely to be  February. The actual scale of the increase will vary by category as we are under heavy negotiation with factories at this time.”

Reid confirmed the increases will apply right across the business, however some categories may avoid increase.

“One or two categories may avoid a price increase based on our exchange rate sharing arrangements, but it will be virtually across the board,” Reid said.

Reid said he has not seen a price rise in the television category in over 20 years of sales experience in the industry including 10 years at Samsung and four years at Panasonic.

“I can’t recall the last increase in the television category,” he said.