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Edible oils are being traded at up to Tk 20 a litre above government-set prices of the commodities in the city markets.
Traders were also charging higher than government-set prices for sugar.
Retailers were blaming wholesalers while the wholesalers were holding refiners responsible for charging prices higher than commerce ministryapproved prices for the items.
Data from state-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh showed that unpackaged soya bean oil was selling on Tuesday at Tk 140-145 a litre in the city markets, which was Tk 4-9 above the government-set price.
The commerce ministry on October 19 allowed the traders to sell unpackaged soya bean oil at the consumer level at Tk 136 a litre.
The government data showed that palm oil was traded in the city markets at Tk 130-138 a litre, which was Tk 12-20 more than the ministry-approved price.
The commerce ministry has set the maximum retail price of palm oil at Tk 118 a litre.
Zakir Hossain, a retailer at Karwan Bazar, blamed the wholesalers for charging additional prices for edible oils.
‘Wholesalers are not complying with the ministry-approved prices of edible oils and we are forced to sell the items at high prices to the consumers,’ he said.
A wholesaler from Moulvibazar in the city said that it was not possible to comply with the government-set wholesale prices of sugar and unpackaged edible oils as the refiners were not abiding by the commerce ministry-approved mill gate rate for the commodities.
The commerce ministry and the refiners on September 9 set the retail price of unpackaged refined sugar at Tk 74 a kg and that of packaged sugar at Tk 75 a kg. However, the prices of the items still remained high and they were selling at Tk 75-80 a kg in the city.
‘It is true that unpackaged edible oils were being traded at high prices in the market as it is very difficult to track the refiners and dealers of unpackaged oils due to lack of tags on the items,’ AHM Shafiquzzaman, additional secretary (import and internal trade wing) of the commerce ministry, told New Age.
He said that the government had decided not to allow any unpackaged edible oils to be traded on the market from March next year.
‘We are facing difficulties with unpackaged edible oils. If you look at bottled soya bean oil, the item is selling at the price approved by the ministry,’ Shafiquzzaman said.
Regarding the sugar prices, he said that after the commerce ministry set the prices of refined sugar at Tk 74-75 a kg, the Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation set the prices of locally-produced sugar at Tk 85 a kg.
That has created confusion on the market, Shafiquzzaman said.
Moreover, mobile courts have continued to conduct drives on the market to keep the prices of essential commodities under control, he added.
(NA)
