Essential Commodities: Prices spike a month ahead of Ramadan

The soaring prices of daily essentials, including edible oil, onion and vegetables, have added to the woes of the people living on a fixed income.

 

Consumers and market analysts blamed unscrupulous businessmen for the price hike, alleging that they are manipulating the prices ahead of Ramadan beginning in the middle of next month.

 

Visiting kitchen markets in the capital's Shantinagar, Jatrabari, Shewrapara and Hatirpool areas yesterday, this newspaper found that the prices of essential commodities increased compared to a few weeks ago.

 

Yesterday, 5-litre bottled soyabean oil was sold for Tk 630 to Tk 650 at Shewrapara bus stop kitchen market, up from Tk 550 to Tk 560 in January.

 

Md Shafiul Ather Taslim, director of finance and operation at TK Group, one of the leading importers and processors of commodities, said the price of crude soyabean oil increased to $1,190 a tonne in the international market recently against $700 a tonne in August last year.

 

He said the production cost of edible oil rose by around 40 percent because of the price spike in the international market.

 

Consumers are spending more on onion as the prices of the essential cooking ingredient have gone up. Traders blamed a dearth of supplyfor the rise in prices.

 

Yesterday, retailers at Hatirpool kitchen market sold onion for Tk 50 to Tk 60 a kg, up from Tk 25 to Tk 30 a month ago.

 

At Shewrapara bus stop kitchen market, broiler chicken was being sold for Tk 160 a kg and the chicken of Sonali variety for Tk 360. A month ago, the prices ranged between Tk 120 and Tk 130, and Tk 200 and Tk 220 respectively.

 

Ahsan Habib, who runs a fast food shop on a van, said prices of chicken shot up by Tk 10 to Tk 40 a kg in a day.

 

"To compete with other fast food shops, we make a minimum profit…. My daily sales dropped significantly after I hiked the price of fried chicken early this month," he said.

 

Taking an undue advantage of the high prices of chicken, meat traders at some kitchen markets in the city hiked the prices of beef by Tk 20 to Tk 30 a kg about a month ago. Yesterday, beef was sold for Tk 550 to Tk 580 a kg.

 

Munzur Murshid Khan, secretary general of Bangladesh Poultry Industries Association, said the price of chicken feed has gone up from Tk 25 a kg to Tk 35.

 

"On the other hand, bird flu and some other diseases have hurt many small poultry farms recently. That's why there is a dearth in the supply and subsequently, the prices of chicken have shot up," he told.

 

There is no respite for consumers in prices of summer vegetables either. Yesterday, they had to spend Tk 60 to Tk 100 for a kg of okra, long bean, pointed gourd and bitter gourd.

 

Rickshaw-puller Enamul Molla of the capital's Ibrahimpur said his income has dropped due to the closure of educational institutions.

"A few months ago, I could buy daily essentials for my family spending Tk 350. Now I need to spend Tk 400 on daily essentials," he said.

 

A private company employee, aged about 40, said he went to Karwan Bazar from Tejkunipara yesterday to buy vegetables and daily essentials at cheaper prices.

 

"My expenditure on food has shot up by 10 percent in a month whereas my annual pay increase remains suspended. My monthly salary was cut by 20 percent due to pandemic," he told this newspaper, preferring anonymity.

 

The employee, who runs a four-member family, said he cannot save money anymore after paying house rent, utility bills and spending money on food.

 

SM Nazer Hossain, vice-president of Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB), said the government failed to monitor the market effectively.

 

"The authorities are not punishing those responsible for the unusual price hike of essentials. As a result, many traders feel encouraged about manipulating the prices," he said.

 

Source: The Daily Star.