Bangladesh raises soybean oil prices by Tk 8 a litre amid supply crunch

Bottled soybean oil will be sold at Tk 175 per litre, while loose oil will cost Tk 157 per litre

Refiners have raised the price of soybean oil by Tk 8 per litre after taking advice from the government amid a supply shortage in the market.

Mustafa Haider, president of the Bangladesh Edible Oil Association, announced the price hike after a meeting on the situation at the Ministry of Commerce on Monday.

From now on, the price of bottled soybean oil will be Tk 175 per litre, up from Tk 167 per litre, and loose oil will be sold for Tk 157 per litre, up from Tk 149 per litre, Haider said.

“We have to set the prices based on the average of three values – the ex-bond and in-bond values and the price of opening an LC [letter of credit]. Various processing costs and bottling costs have to be added to this. This method has been practised since 2011,” he said.

"From now on, the prices of edible oil will be fixed every month in consultation with the government. The price of edible oil has now gone close to $1,200 per tonne in the international market."

Commerce Advisor Sheikh Bashir Uddin said: "There is a slight shortage of soybean oil in the market at the moment, as has been seen in the media. We have restructured the pricing system with the help of the Tariff Commission as a practical step to solving this problem after meeting with stakeholders.”

"In mid-April, the price of bottled soybean oil was fixed at Tk 167 per litre. Since then, the price has increased by more than 20 percent in the international market. Due to this, local hoarding has increased, driven by fears of a price hike in the domestic market."

"After analysing all the information, we have seen that the stock in the country is satisfactory; there is no shortage of stock. On the other hand, we have seen a form of hoarding activity everywhere, starting from small places.

The Directorate of Consumer Rights Protection is working to curb illegal hoarding of commodities, according to him. The government is also considering price adjustments to stabilise the market and bring the situation back to normal, he said.