OK fair enough but just look up any definition of 'market forces'....
"the economic factors affecting the price of, demand for, and availability of a commodity."
"the actions of buyers and sellers that cause the prices of goods and services to change without being controlled by the government : the economic forces of supply and demand The value of these commodities is determined by market forces."
"Market forces refer to supply and demand, which determine the allocation of scarce resources and the relative prices of goods, services, and assets in a market economy."
You use the words "had" and "was" which are in the past tense whilst we are talking about prices here and now. Even in a monopoly state there is a market as folks are free to choose not to buy the product or else look at alternatives. Tricky with bottled gas I'll agree but not insurmountable.