FE Report
Potato price increased by 40-50 per cent at the retail level over the past week compared with a week ago after the price hike in rural areas.
Onion price soared, loose edible oil and lentil prices reduced while other commodity prices remained static on Friday.
Potato prices, which witnessed a record two year low this season, went up significantly in the last seven days.
The mostly sold granola variety of potato was vended at Tk 14-15 per kg in the city yesterday (Friday), which was Tk9-10 per kg seven days back, vendors in the different city kitchen markets said.
"Per palla (5 kg) of granola (known as Holand potato) was sold at Tk 35-40 last week which is now Tk 78-84 in the Rayer Bazar wholesale market, " Ashraful Islam Liton, a retailer at BanalataKancha Bazar in Newmarket area said.
He said cardinal and diamond varieties of potato were sold at Tk 24-26 per kg in the retail on Friday against Tk 16-20 per kg seven days back.
"Two weeks ago, our headache was to preserve potato as a huge volume was entering to the city due to very low price of the item, but the scenario has totally changed now," Kapil Karmakar, a wholesaler at Rayerbazar area said.
Cost for per truck granola variety of potato has soared to Tk 0.16-0.17 million last week, which was Tk 0.083-0.09 million last week as the price has hiked significantly in Rajshahi, Bogra, Pabna and Rangpur regions, he said.
According to the Department of Agriculture Marketing (DAM), different varieties of potato prices increased by 50-100 per cent in just ten days across the country in retail and wholesale respectively.
Imported onion price remained static and was sold at Tk 25-26 per kg while local variety was sold at Tk 30 per kg on the day---a Tk 4 increase in a week. Traders said the price will be reduced significantly within a week as harvest of onion has started on in full swing in Pabna, Dinajpur, Bogra and Faridpur districts.
Prices of edible oils (loose) including palm, super palm and soybean have reduced by Tk 2-6 per litre. Loose soybean was sold at Tk 103-104 per litre this week which was Tk 106-108 per litre last week.
River fish prices were static maintaining higher prices while farm fish (pangas, koi, tilapia) prices reduced slightly by Tk 5-10 per kg.
Newly harvested pointed gourd, long bean, moringa (shajna) were the expensive vegetables and were vended at Tk 80, Tk 80 and Tk 120 per kg respectively on the day.
Prices of other summer vegetable snake gourd, bitter gourd, sponge gourd, ridge gourd and okra prices slightly reduced this week--- by Tk 2-4 per kg.
