Welcome to Business Outlook
Related Articles
Prices of vegetables witnessed a sharp rise in the city’s kitchen markets due to heavy rains across the country in the last four days.
Traders said that the prices of most of the vegetables had almost doubled in the last four days as the supply chain was disrupted by the onset of monsoon.
Many farmlands across the country suffered damages and at the same time, the heavy downpour created a supply shortage of vegetables in the city markets.
Consumers expressed their frustrations over the abnormal price hike of vegetables amid high prices of other essential commodities, including rice, edible oil, pulse and sugar.
The prices of vegetables had increased by Tk 20-30 a kilogram in the city markets in the last four days.
Aubergine sold for Tk 60-90 a kg, papaya for Tk 40 a kg, bitter gourd for Tk 90-100 a kg, bottle gourd for Tk 60-70 apiece, okra for Tk 50-60 a kg, pointed gourd for Tk 60 a kg, cucumber for Tk 60-70a kg and tomato for Tk 80 a kg on Tuesday.
The price of green chili had increased three-folds in the last four days and the item sold for Tk 80-100 a kg.
The traders said that the prices of green chili had increased abnormally due to an acute supply shortage of the item as most of the farmlands across the country had suffered damages with the onset of monsoon.
‘It is absurd; I have bought a kg of aubergine for Tk 70 a kg while traders are charging Tk 100 a kg for bitter gourd,’ said Abul Bashar, a private jobholder who came to Mohammdpur Town Hall kitchen market in the city on Tuesday.
He said that it had become difficult for him to maintain his daily family expenses as the prices of essential commodities, including rice, vegetables and edible oil, had continued to rise during the Covid outbreak.
The prices of rice had remained high in the city markets for more than a year.
The medium quality variety was selling for Tk 52-58 a kg while the coarse variety was selling for Tk 46-50 a kg on Tuesday.
The standard variety of Miniket rice sold for Tk 60-62 a kg and the fine variety sold for Tk 64-66 a kg.
Najirshail rice sold for Tk 65-70 a kg in the city.
The prices of edible oil witnessed frequent hikes in the city markets and had hit a record high.
A one-litre bottle of soya bean oil sold for Tk 150-160 while five litres of packaged soya bean oil sold for Tk 680-720.
Unpackaged soya bean oil sold for Tk 130 a litre and palm oil sold for Tk 115-118 a litre.
Rubina Khatun, a readymade garment worker, said that she found the price of no one vegetable affordable.
‘We are puzzled as to how we should maintain our daily expenses with low incomes amid the continuous price hikes of the daily essentials,’ she said.
