The prices of onions, farm eggs and vegetables witnessed a fresh hike at the kitchen markets in the capital Dhaka over the week ending Friday, with the onion prices soaring by Tk聽20 a kilogram in a couple of days.
After visiting some of the capital鈥檚 kitchen markets, including Kallyanpur Natun Bazar, Agargaon Taltola Bazar and Karwan Bazar, it was observed that onions were being sold at Tk聽80-85 a kilogram, up from Tk聽60-65 a kilogram past week.
However, the price of onions was Tk聽65-70 on the wholesale market.
The egg price reached Tk聽135-140 a dozen, which was Tk聽125-130 a dozen past week.
The prices of broiler chicken remained high for the past few weeks, and the item was sold at Tk聽170-180 a kilogram at retail markets.
However, the prices of broiler chicken were Tk 160-170 at the wholesale markets like Karwan Bazar.
Traders said that the markets had experienced a supply shortage due to excessive rainfall across the country in recent weeks.
Shamsul Alam, a trader at Karwan Bazar, said that due to excessive monsoon rain, a large portion of the stockpiled onions had rotted, creating a supply shortage of the spice on the market.
鈥楾he rain also disrupted the usual transport. Onion prices might get lower if supply normalises,鈥� he added.
The sudden hike put a significant pressure on the household budgets of ordinary consumers.
Traders noted that egg production typically declined during the rainy season.
Kabir Hossain, a trader at Kallyanpur Natun Bazar, stated that the excessive rain in the past few weeks had disrupted the supply chain for eggs and chicken, which had impacted the prices of the items.
Azizul Haque, a resident of the Kallyanpur area in the capital Dhaka, said that for weeks, the prices of vegetables, eggs, and chicken had remained stable.
However, the sudden increase in all three is hitting low- and middle-income families hard.
The prices of almost all types of vegetables ranged from Tk聽40 to Tk聽80 a kilogram, while green chillies were sold at over Tk聽200 a kilogram on the retail market and Tk聽160-180 a kilogram on the wholesale.
The price of green chillies was Tk聽80-120 a kilogram about a month ago.
Traders said that due to heavy rain across the country for several weeks, the supply of green chilies and other vegetables had declined significantly.
Spiny gourd was sold at Tk 50-60 a kilogram, the same as past week, while snake gourd and pointed gourd were sold at Tk聽50-60 a kilogram on the market.
The price of okra was Tk聽40-50 a kilogram, while yard-long beans, bitter gourds and aubergines were sold for Tk聽50-70 a kilogram.
Red chillies were sold for Tk聽350-400 a kilogram, depending on the variant.
Cucumbers were sold for Tk聽80-100 a kilogram.
The price of potatoes has increased slightly to Tk聽25-30 a kilogram.
However, the prices of the vegetables were about Tk聽10-20 higher at neighbourhood markets.
Some vegetables that are currently out of season were still available on some markets on Friday, but their prices were significantly high.
Among them, beans were selling for Tk 300-400 a kilogram, coriander leaves for Tk聽350-400 a kilogram, while cauliflower and cabbage were being sold at Tk 80-100 apiece.
The price of Miniket rice ranged from Tk 75 to Tk聽86 a kilogram, depending on the variant.
Beef was sold for Tk 750-780 a kilogram on Friday, while mutton was sold for Tk 1,100-1,250 a kilogram.
Due to a sufficient supply, the fish market has remained relatively stable.
Packaged soya bean oil was sold for Tk聽189 a litre and a five-litre bottle of the item for Tk 922, whereas the prices of unpackaged soya bean oil and palm oil were Tk聽169 a litre.
