Traders raise soybean oil prices by up to Tk 12 a litre

Traders have raised soybean oil prices by up to Tk 12 per litre, the highest increase in recent times, citing hike in the international market.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 27 May 2021, 05:29 PM
Updated : 27 May 2021, 05:54 PM

The Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners and Vanaspati Manufacturers Association announced the new prices on Thursday.

According to the new prices, one litre of bottled soybean oil will be sold at the retail market at Tk 153, up from Tk 141. A bottle of 5 litre soybean oil will now cost Tk 728.

The price of unpacked soybean oil has been set at Tk 129.

The association, however, cut palm oil price to Tk 112 per litre, saying they expect the prices will drop in the international market. 

Before Ramadan, the traders had announced a hike of bottled soybean oil by Tk 5 to Tk 144 per litre. They later agreed to set the price at Tk 141 per litre following the government’s request.

Commerce Secretary Md Jafar Uddin said the traders proposed the latest hike to adjust the prices with the international market.

The National Board of Revenue last month waived 4 percent advance tax on import of edible oil as part of efforts to keep the prices down, but the staple continued to get costlier.

Mostofa Haider, president of the oil refiners’ association, said it would be difficult for them to import oil if they did not raise the prices. Keeping the prices down now, he claimed, would create a crisis during the Eid-ul-Azha.

Mohammad Ali Bhutto, senior vice-president of Wholesale Edible Oil Traders Association, said they believed the international market will remain volatile for at least two months until the product of the new season hits the American markets.