The prices of chickens and soya bean oil have continued rising on the kitchen markets in the capital, Dhaka, due to an increased demand for the items.
The price of broiler chicken increased by Tk 20 a kilogram while the price of Sonali variety of chicken rose by Tk 120 a kg in the city in the last two weeks.
Traders said that the prices of chickens went up due to a rise in social programmes, including weddings and picnics, with the COVID-19 worries decreasing.
Consumers expressed their anger over the continued price hike of chickens and said that the source of animal protein for the lower income group of people in the city became dearer due to the high price of broiler chicken.
‘I have already lost my capacity for purchasing mutton and beef a few years ago due to the high prices of the items and shifted my choice to broiler and Sonali chickens. Recently Sonali chicken has gone out of my reach due to a sharp hike in the price of the item,’ Helal Uddin, a security guard at an apartment at Mohammadpur in the city, told New Age on Friday.
He said that the price hike also forced them to lower the intake of broiler chicken.
The price of broiler chicken increased by Tk 10 a kg over the week and the item was selling for Tk 160-165 a kg in the city markets on Friday.
The price of Sonali variety of chicken increased by Tk 70 a kg over the week and the item was selling for Tk 340-350 a kg in the city markets.
The local variety of chicken was selling for Tk 450-500 a kg.
Beef sold for Tk 540-560 a kg while mutton sold for Tk 800-900 a kg in the capital.
The prices of soya bean oil increased by Tk 2-5 a litre in the city markets over the week ending on Friday.
A one-litre bottle of soya bean oil sold for Tk 130-140 while five litres of packaged soya bean oil sold for Tk 580-630 on Friday.
Unpackaged soya bean oil sold for Tk 115-120 a litre and palm oil sold for Tk 105-107 a litre on the day.
The prices of rice remained high in the city and the medium-quality variety sold for Tk 52-58 a kg on Friday.
The standard variety of Miniket rice sold for Tk 62-65 a kg and the fine variety sold for Tk 67-70 a kg.
Najirshail rice sold for Tk 70-72 a kg in the city.
The prices of onion increased by Tk 10 a kg over the week. The local variety sold for Tk 30-40 a kg while the imported variety sold for Tk 20-25 a kg over the week in the capital.
The prices of vegetables remained stable in the kitchen markets over the week.
Aubergine sold for Tk 30-40 a kg, papaya for Tk 30-40 a kg, bitter gourd for Tk 40-60 a kg, bottle gourd for Tk 40-60 apiece, beans for Tk 30-40 a kg, radish for Tk 10-20 a kg, cucumber for Tk 30 a kg, cauliflower for Tk 20 apiece, cabbage for Tk 15-20 apiece and tomato for Tk 20-25 a kg on Friday.
The price of potato remained unchanged over the week and the item sold for Tk 18-20 a kg.
The prices of sugar remained high over the week. Refined sugar retailed at Tk 68-70 a kg while the locally-produced variety retailed at Tk 70 a kg.
The price of green chilli remained unchanged and the item sold for Tk 80-100 a kg on Friday.
The price of eggs remained unchanged. The item was selling for Tk 30-32 a hali or four pieces.
The prices of red lentil remained unchanged over the week.
The coarse variety sold for Tk 65-70 a kg while the medium-quality variety sold for Tk 85-90 a kg on the markets on Friday.
The fine variety of red lentil sold for Tk 115-120 a kg on the day.
The prices of fish remained unchanged over the week.
Rohita sold for Tk 260-350 a kg and Katla for Tk 250-350 a kg, depending on the size and quality.
Pangas sold for Tk 130-180 a kg and Tilapia sold for Tk 120-160 a kg.
The imported variety of garlic retailed at Tk 100-130 a kg while the local variety sold for Tk 70-80 a kg in the capital.
The imported variety of ginger sold for Tk 80-120 a kg and the local variety retailed at Tk 100-120 a kg.
Fine-quality packaged salt retailed at Tk 35 a kg while the refined variety retailed at Tk 25 a kg.