Staff Reporter :
The onion price has jumped by Tk six to Tk eight per kg in the city markets on the second day (Tuesday) of the Ramzan.
The price of onion, the most consumed item in the country, continues to increase after the Indian government had fixed $300 per tonne as Minimum Export Price (MEP).
Since India is the main source of onion for Bangladesh, the latest export rate will have an unpleasant impact on the price of the item in Bangladesh market unless the government imports it from other countries.
At Karwan Bazaar, Indian onion was selling at Tk 40 to 42 per kg while the local product at Tk 42 to 44 per kg. Every year India exports 15 lakh tonnes of onion of which Bangladesh is the main destination, sources said.
Following hike in price from Rs 15-20 per kg to Rs 25-30 a kg in India within a
span of 15 days, the New Delhi government increased the export price at $300 per tonne . Previously it was $150.
Retail traders said, the price at the retail level will go up if the rate at the wholesale level increases. Some of the traders have already increased price though the supply is sufficient.
India’s new export price will have no impact on the Bangladesh market immediately if the government takes necessary steps, said Md. Mazid, Executive Member of Shayam Bazar Banik Samity.
He said that they had taken delivery of lots of onions by this time. The letters of credit were opened before new rate.
So, there is little probability of price hike during the Ramzan if the government can strictly handle the situation and check price manipulation by unscrupulous traders, he opined.
A Bangladesh Bank data suggests that traders have opened LCs for $8.21 million in May compared with $ 152.11 million during the July 2013-February 2014 period.
Sources of Department of Agriculture Extension said that onion growers saw a good harvest this season.
Though the DAE is yet to estimate this year’s onion production, but it is projected to be more than 1.9 million tonnes.
Farmers of Pabna and Faridpur, the two major onion growing districts, saw a record production of onion this year. Sources said that production of onion in the year 2013 was 19.14 lakh tonnes. In the year 2012, the country experienced a production of 18.99 lakh tonnes of onion.
The onion price has jumped by Tk six to Tk eight per kg in the city markets on the second day (Tuesday) of the Ramzan.
The price of onion, the most consumed item in the country, continues to increase after the Indian government had fixed $300 per tonne as Minimum Export Price (MEP).
Since India is the main source of onion for Bangladesh, the latest export rate will have an unpleasant impact on the price of the item in Bangladesh market unless the government imports it from other countries.
At Karwan Bazaar, Indian onion was selling at Tk 40 to 42 per kg while the local product at Tk 42 to 44 per kg. Every year India exports 15 lakh tonnes of onion of which Bangladesh is the main destination, sources said.
Following hike in price from Rs 15-20 per kg to Rs 25-30 a kg in India within a
span of 15 days, the New Delhi government increased the export price at $300 per tonne . Previously it was $150.
Retail traders said, the price at the retail level will go up if the rate at the wholesale level increases. Some of the traders have already increased price though the supply is sufficient.
India’s new export price will have no impact on the Bangladesh market immediately if the government takes necessary steps, said Md. Mazid, Executive Member of Shayam Bazar Banik Samity.
He said that they had taken delivery of lots of onions by this time. The letters of credit were opened before new rate.
So, there is little probability of price hike during the Ramzan if the government can strictly handle the situation and check price manipulation by unscrupulous traders, he opined.
A Bangladesh Bank data suggests that traders have opened LCs for $8.21 million in May compared with $ 152.11 million during the July 2013-February 2014 period.
Sources of Department of Agriculture Extension said that onion growers saw a good harvest this season.
Though the DAE is yet to estimate this year’s onion production, but it is projected to be more than 1.9 million tonnes.
Farmers of Pabna and Faridpur, the two major onion growing districts, saw a record production of onion this year. Sources said that production of onion in the year 2013 was 19.14 lakh tonnes. In the year 2012, the country experienced a production of 18.99 lakh tonnes of onion.
