Onion, potato prices to come down by mid-Dec

Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Wednesday said onions and potatoes will be available at lower prices by mid-December.
He made the remarks while talking to journalists after a meeting of the National Tariff Policy Monitoring and Review Committee at the Bangladesh Secretariat, reports UNB.
Replying to a question, he said the prices of onion may decrease when the new crop will arrive in market. "Murikata variety of onion will be available in the market next and the price may come down."
The minister also emphasised the need for promoting local production, and said as new potatoes will hit the market at the end of December, the price will come down.
"Again, when we talk about oil and sugar, it depends on the prices in the international market. Depending on the context, prices will increase or decrease," he said.
"We have a 20 per cent shortage of onions and we meet this gap by importing - 90 per cent of the imports come from India. The price has gone up there too."
He mentioned that the prices of vegetables fluctuate due to factors such as rains, transportation cost, and occasional hoarding.
However, the minister said the prices of certain vegetables have started falling and the prices of winter vegetables will come down in the coming days. He expected to see some relief in prices as imports continued.
In the meantime, the first shipment of imported eggs has entered the country. "I see its impact on the market. If more eggs are imported, you will find it at the price fixed by the government."