Who controls the market?

The government has set the price of edible oil in a chaotic situation with the price on the capital market. Previously, the government had set the price for potatoes. But no effect was observed in the market. Rice and oil prices have risen more during the week. The price of rice has increased from Rs 2 to 4 per kg per week. And the price of oil has increased from 3 to 4 rupees per liter. There is no way to control the way prices go up. No rules or regulations are obeyed. From time to time, the government department sets the price of the product. But it is not considered very effective. In some cases, some people think that this price goes for traders. However, if the price of a product falls in the international market, there is no initiative to reduce it in the domestic market at any time. Buyers are likely to call everyone who seems suitable, if there are only a few. Common people wonder who really controls the market. Many complain that those responsible for market control are working to protect the health of traders. For this reason, the interests of ordinary people are not seen.

At a meeting of the National Committee for Marketing and Distribution of Essential Products at the Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday, the price of bottled soybean oil was set at Tk 135 per liter, open soybeans at Tk 115 and palm super at Tk 104 in retail trade. market. A 5-liter bottle of bottled soybeans is priced at Rs 630.
Why the price of edible oil rises from time to time, this question is common among buyers. Consumers complain that there is a cycle of handling edible oil under the pretext of higher prices on the international market. They are increasing the price from time to time.

Open soybean oil sells for Rs 130-135 on the retail market. Where the government has set 115 Tk and bottled soybean oil is sold at 140-145 Tk per liter and the government has set 135 Tk. In other words, soybean oil sells for Rs 10-15 more than the price set by the government. This can be verified by visiting the capital market on yesterday’s holiday.

The retailers said they had not received any instructions on the additional price. The government will take at least 15 days to set the price of soybean oil.
Vendors in several markets, including Kawran Bazar, said the oil in the store was older. Even after this, a liter bottle is ordered for 135 to 140 rupees. The maximum selling price (MRP) written on the packaging of a 5 liter bottle is 655 to 75 rupees.

According to the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), a state-owned marketing agency, the open soybean oil sold for Rs 117 to Rs 120 per liter in the retail market, up from Rs 112 to Rs 116 a week ago. The price has increased by 4 Tk per liter in a week. And the 5 liter bottled oil has been sold for Rs 580 to Rs 630, which was from Rs 580 to Rs 620 a week ago. It is more than the price set by the government.
Mohammad Ali Bhutto, General Secretary of the Bangladesh Wholesale Edible Oil Traders Association, said the price of soybean oil at the distributor level was Tk 4,420 two weeks ago. Now it has been sold for 4,480 rupees. The price has gone up Rs 60 per gram. And two weeks ago, the price of palm oil was 3,600 rupees. It is now selling for 3,650 rupees. It sells for an additional 150 rupees an ounce. However, the difference between crude soybean oil and palm oil on the international market is only £ 50 per tonne.

It is worth mentioning that the price of soybean oil has increased 9.52 percent in one month. The growth rate during the year is 12.20 percent. Soybean oil, which costs Tk 6 per liter, now sells for Tk 130. No one has an explanation for such a price difference.

Meanwhile, the rice market continues to boom. Nazirshail rice sells for 8 Tk per kg, and at present Miniket rice sells for 60-65 Tk. Kataribhog is sold at Tk 75, Chinigura Polish rice at Tk 95, Hashki Nazir at Tk 55, Polish rice at Tk 100, Atash at Tk 52-54, pajamas at Tk 50, Nazir cumin at Tk 6-80 and Kajal Lata rice at Tk 55-56.

Rice is imported privately from India to control the market. But it didn’t have much of an impact. It has been alleged that the millers are selling Indian rice in bags at higher prices to maintain the price.
Golam Rahman, president of the Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB), said merchants have always seen prices rise during Ramadan. A month or two before the arrival of Ramadan, prices go up. So now we have to strictly monitor this problem and control the price. Also, if the price rises unreasonably, it will have to be punished. Otherwise, as always, the unscrupulous will cut the consumer’s pocket for huge profits. This will cause great embarrassment to consumers.

For his part, in a statement issued yesterday to the media, SM Nazer Hossain, vice president of the Central Committee of the CAC, said that the lack of sincerity in an adequate monitoring at the field level in the implementation of the fixed price casts doubts on the success of government policy. initiative.

He said edible oil traders had passed the Domestic Tariff Commission law on behalf of the international market and had officially recognized the price increase.
Edible oil is an imported product. The price cannot be increased without the permission of the Rate Commission. And since the packaging is sold. That is why it is forbidden to sell at a price higher than that of the packaging. Even then, merchants sell at higher prices. The government watchdogs were silent bystanders. Therefore, there will be no benefit at the consumer level from this pricing, he said.

He said it was not possible to control unscrupulous traders by setting prices, lowering tariffs and importing rice from abroad. No action was taken against the identified rogue merchants.

The statement said that to avoid creating an artificial crisis with edible oil during the next holy month of Ramadan, strict control of import, distribution and marketing at the consumer level should be ensured from now on. Strong enforcement of laws needs to be strengthened to curb storage and mobile court activities.