The government has asked its market monitoring agencies to strengthen vigilance so that businesses cannot hike commodity prices in the name of short supply, triggered by coronavirus epidemic.
The ministry of commerce on Friday convened an emergency meeting and gave instructions to the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh, or TCB, the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection, or DNCRP, and its own market monitoring team.
The meeting chaired by commerce secretary Dr Jafar Uddin asked the officials to remain alert so that no businessman can take the advantage of profit-mongering.
A senior official, who attended the meeting, told the FE there is evidence that some unscrupulous businesspeople on various occasions have taken the advantage of supply chain disruption and raised commodity prices.
These types of businessmen may take the chance again as coronavirus continues to spread, posing threat to the commodity supply chain, he said.
"We've sat today to assess the impact the coronavirus epidemic it may have on our domestic market," said the official.
"We also discussed the possible steps to tackle the situation," he added.
The official said China is a major sourcing partner for Bangladesh. From industrial raw materials to essential commodities, Bangladesh is largely dependent on China and the annual import from the world's second-largest economy reached over $15 billion.
If supply chain from China is vastly disrupted due to the coronavirus outbreak, prices of essential commodities may go up significantly, he said.
The official also said the holy Ramadan will start in late April when commodity prices usually rise significantly.
The meeting also asked all concerned to take appropriate steps so that price hike can be contained in the holy month.
Meantime, the commerce ministry on Thursday asked the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, or FBCCI, to assess the possible impacts of coronavirus outbreak on export- import trade.
The apex trade body has also been asked to submit the assessment report in three days and after that the government will take necessary measures to tackle the situation.
Commerce secretary told the FE the consumer rights protection directorate has been asked to play a serious role in preventing any unholy practice by businessmen.
The ministry's own monitoring teams have also given instructions to act properly in an attempt to avert any possible commodity price hike as the coronavirus crisis lingers on, he added.
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