Edible oil prices keep going up

Edible oil prices have been rising for a long time and since the end of the Eid holidays, the prices of edible oil – palm oil, super palm oil and soybean oil – have surged by Tk100 to Tk350 per maund (37.3 kg) in Khatunganj, the largest consumer wholesale market in the country.

Usually, palm oil is sold at Tk2,000 to Tk2,500 per maund but at present, it is being sold at Tk4,450 in Khatunganj, which was Tk4,100 at the end of Ramadan.

Edible oil traders in Khatunganj said that at present, Bay Fishing palm oil is being sold at Tk4,450, S Alam at Tk4,440 and Meghna Group and Bashundhara Group palm oil at Tk4,430.

At the same time, the price of palm super oil has also gone up by Tk150 per maund and is being sold at Tk4,500 which was Tk4,350 earlier.

At present, palm super oil of Bay Fishing of T K Group is being sold at Tk4,500, S Alam at Tk4,490 and others at Tk4,480 per maund.

The price of soybean oil has gone up by Tk100 per maund and is being sold at Tk4,700 which was Tk4,600.

Sheikh Selim, an edible oil trader in Khatunganj, said the market for edible oil, especially palm oil, is on the rise in the international market. The new season palm is coming to the market in Malaysia now. Last month, at the beginning of the season, the market for palm oil declined a little and the market for the product rose again this month, affecting the price of the product in the domestic market.

At present, the booking price per tonne of palm oil in Malaysia is 4,400 ringgits. It was booked at 3,700-3,800 ringgit in the middle of last month and 4,100 ringgits at the end of the month, he added.

According to Index Mundi, the international market for palm oil has been growing since September 2019 when each tonne of palm oil was sold at 2,428 ringgits.

In February this year, palm oil was sold at 4,118 ringgits per tonne. Then, the price of the product gradually decreased to 3,700 ringgits in April. However, from the beginning of this month, the price of the product started rising again and now is being sold at 4,400 ringgits.

The international booking price per tonne of palm oil is 4,400 ringgits (Tk96,800). With an additional cost of Tk10,000, the import cost stands at Tk1,06,800. As per the estimation, per litre soybean oil is Tk106.

However, the palm oil that is currently being sold in Khatunganj at Tk4,450 was bought from the international market at least two months ago at below Tk4,100 per maund.

Citigroup executive director Bishjit Saha told The Business Standard that the booking price of all oils in the international market is increasing. Previously imported products are now being sold at lower prices in the market. Edible oil prices are likely to rise further after products booked later reach the market.

According to Chittagong Customs House, 6,52,521 tonnes of refined and crude palm oil was imported through Chittagong Port in the last nine months of the current financial year (July to March). At the same time last year, 10,90,247 tonnes of palm oil were imported.

In the first nine months of the last financial year, 3,95,13 tonnes of soybean were imported and this year, 4,33,600 tonnes of soybean oil was imported.