Staff Reporter :
The potato and onion market experienced a significant surge following the Eid festivities, with prices soaring by Tk 5 to 10 per kg.
Despite the conclusion of Eid holidays, the kitchen and groceries in the city had yet to return to normal, and prices of these essentials witnessed a further increase, attributed by traders to a rise in district hubs.
In city markets, potato prices reached Tk 50–60 a kg (cardinal, diamond) and Tk 65–70 a kg (BARI alu 29), while local onions were priced at Tk 55–65 and imported ones at Tk 65–70 a kg, according to kitchen market sources.
Jahangir Alam, a vendor at Rayerbazar, told The New Nation, “Potato prices had been steadily rising every week since the beginning of Ramadan.”
He said that the dominance of big traders and cold storage owners has been destabilising the market.
“The government had set a maximum price of Tk 29 per kg for potatoes this year, but cold storage prices surged to Tk 35 per kg long before Eid,” he added .
Onion trader Joynal Abedin at Shyambazar wholesale in the city said that hoarders had begun preserving seasonal onions in Rajbari, Gopalganj, Faridpur, Pabna, and other areas in large volumes to make high profits.
Inflation edged up in March after marginally easing in the previous
month, showing no signs of respite for consumers already hurt by the consistent erosion of buying capacity due to elevated prices.
In March, inflation, a measure of the increase in the prices of a basket of goods and services over a period, rose 9.81 percent, compared with 9.67 percent in February, as prices of both food and non-food items increased, according to data released by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) recently.
In March, prices of rice, potatoes, and pulses surged, eroding the purchasing power of low-income and poor people who spend half of their income on food.
Nationally, food prices grew 9.87 percent in March. In February, the rate was 9.44 percent. Non-food prices also rose at a higher pace in March than in the previous month.