Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
Prices of garlic and some vegetables witnessed a fresh hike in the city on Monday.
Garlic price shot up by Tk 20-30 per kg and it was sold at Tk 160-190 a kg, depending on varieties.
Traders said higher import costs as well as a decline in local production fueled up the prices of garlic.
Meanwhile, green chilli, yard-long bean, pointed gourd, brinjal and some leafy vegetables witnessed further hike.
Retail vendors said heavy rain in many vegetable fields caused the recent surge in prices.
Hamidul Hoqe, a grocer at Sher-e-Bangla Road in Hazaribagh in Dhaka said prices of imported Chinese garlic increased to Tk 155-160 a kg while local and Indian garlic prices rose to Tk 135-140 a kg in Shyambazar wholesale market. The price is Tk 15-16 more per kg than the last week.
He said the supply is also limited. So, the retailers are buying low volume of the spice.
Shafiqul Islam Belal, a Shyambazar-based trader, said, "Minimum cost of Chinese garlic per kg is Tk 145 and on top of that around 10 to 12 per cent of the consignment is usually wasted."
He said garlic import cost increased to US $ 1,230-1,240 a tonne making it difficult for traders in Dhaka and Chattogram to open LCs.
He said local production has also declined by at least 20 per cent this year.
According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the country produced 0.64 million tonnes of garlic this financial year against the demand of 0.95 million tonnes.
The country has imported 76,000 tonnes of onion so far in this financial year when it usually imports 0.25 to 0.35 million tonnes, according to the commerce ministry.
Meanwhile, with an average hike of Tk 10-20 per kg, the price of green chilli stands at Tk 150-180 per kg, pointed gourd Tk 60-80 a kg, yard-long bean Tk 70-90 a kg.
Jakir Hossain, a vegetable trader at Rayerbazar in the city, said prices of vegetables increased notably in the wholesale markets due to the recent rain in many parts of the country.
The prices of vegetables might increase further if the rain continues, he said.