The New Nation - Internet Edition

Talha Bin Habib

The prices of all varieties of soybean oil maintained a high trend in the kitchen markets of the city yesterday.

Retailers said the prices of those commodities have increased due to short supply from the wholesalers and some brand companies.

But customers alleged that a section of dishonest sellers were charging high prices despite its availability in abundance in the markets.

They said some unscrupulous traders might stock it to make windfall profits.

They called upon the government for proper market monitoring and strong surveillance by the law enforcing agencies for containing the prices of soybean oil.

Retailers said they had to purchase soybean and palm at high prices from the wholesalers.

Insufficient and untimely deliveries of soybean and palm have made the prices high, said retailers at Karwan Bazar yesterday.

Soybean wholesalers at the Moulvi Bazar said they were not getting sufficient quantity of soybean and palm oil from the mills. Crisis of soybean in the markets had caused price hike, they claimed. "Irregular delivery and price hikes in the international market especially in Malaysia and the USA are responsible for high price," said one of the influential traders of Bangladesh Wholesale Edible Oil Association.

Wholesale price of per maund of soybean oil was sold at Tk 4350 to Tk 4400, super soybean between Tk 3900 and Tk 3950 and palm oil at Tk 3800 to Tk 3850 yesterday.

For the last one-year the prices of soybean and palm oil have increased at 67.61 and 53.62 per cent respectively, said persons associated with the trade.

Retailers at Shantinagar bazaar said they were not getting required quantity of soybean oil from the wholesalers for the last couple of days.

We are not getting regular supply of five litre of different brands of canned soybean oil from the distributors appointed by the oil companies, said Abul Jabbar, a retailer at Malibagh Bazar yesterday.

"For the last two weeks some companies have stopped supply of these items to the retailers", he said and apprehended that the prices might jump up further.