Eid shopping gets momentum in port city

BSS, Chittagong :
As the holy Eid-ul-Fitr, one of the major religious festivals of the Muslim community, is drawing close, shopping has gained momentum with great hustle in the markets in port city.
The buyers are crowding in the city markets here to buy clothes and other items for their families.
All the city markets are seen busy selling their commodities as crowds of customers at the shopping centers start in the morning and continue till midnight.
With a rise in the number of buyers, traffic jam in the city’s different busy areas including New Market, Chawkbazar, Probortok, Andarkillah, GEC, Lalkhan bazar crossings and Agrabad area become acute.
Most salesmen said that the sales have not yet reached its peak compared with past years’ although half of Ramdan has passed.
Shoppers said that the prices of all products had increased
by 10 to 20 per cent than the last year.
 ‘The sales after the Ramadan 12 was around Taka 60 thousand a day last year but this year the volume of sales came down to Taka 20 thousand a day, said Golam Mostafa General Secretary of Sholoshahar Shopping complex Businessmen Association.
Talking to BSS, President of Biponi Bitan Merchant Welfare Association said most of the public and private employees have yet to get their salaries and festival bonus and so they were yet to come to the market.
According to the importers and wholesalers, this year’s most important development centering the Eid shopping economy was pushing of Indian products – which are traditionally dominating in Bangladesh’s Eid market into backward point due to heavy onrush of China, Taiwan and Thailand-made readymade garments, three pieces for girls, shoe, cosmetics, kids item and other fashion products.
Popular Indian clothes are being sold at prices ranging from Taka 3500 to Taka 20,000. Both Indian and local saris are also in great demand, Abdul Mannan, General Secretary of Terribazar Businessmen Association quoting different market sources said.
Different brands of local saris like Silk, Katan, Tangail and Indian Kanjilal, are in great demand in the local markets.
Bangalore, Silk Katan, Anarkoli and Lehenga are being sold in higher prices ranging from Taka 5000 to Taka 50,000.