Lentil now joins the blistering rally 

• Anchor boot dal sold for Tk75 per kg from Tk65 three or four days ago
• Masoor dal saw its price go up to Tk110 per kg from Tk100
• Onion, rice, flour, atta and sugar have become even more costly this week with a 5-10% rise

After wheat, edible oil and rice, lentils from coarse to fine varieties now have joined the rally in commodity prices, leaving limited-income consumers to bear the brunt of the more squeeze on their cost of living. 

On Friday, prices of all kinds of lentils shot up by Tk10 or more. Anchor boot dal, a coarse variety mainly consumed by the poor, was sold at Tk75 per kg from Tk65 three or four days ago, while the fine quality masoor dal saw its price go up to Tk110 per kg from Tk100.

Other commodities, such as onion, rice, flour, atta and sugar have become even more costly this week with a 5-10% rise. 

The Indian variety of onion was sold at Tk60 per kg with a Tk5 hike over a week yesterday in the capital's Karwan Bazar. 

Prices of broiler chicken and Sonali variety went up to Tk150 and Tk290 per kg respectively from Tk145 and Tk260 per kg a week ago. 

Mohammad Mamun, a chicken trader in Karwan Bazar, told The Business Standard that his daily chicken sales have dropped as customers are buying less because of high prices.

Meanwhile, traders said prices of all types of rice have also gone up by Tk50 per sack weighing 50 kgs over a week.

Mahfuzur Rahman, a rice wholesaler in Kawran Bazar, said prices of rice have shot up by Tk50 per 50-kg sack although the government has repeatedly been asking millers to reduce the prices. 

Miniket rice saw a Tk300-Tk400 hike per sack since Eid-ul-Fitr.  The 50 kg sack of miniket rice that used to be available at Tk3,100 is now being sold at Tk3,300-3,400, mainly owing to the syndicate of big traders.

Besides, over the last week, a two-kg packet of atta increased to Tk110 from Tk90 and red atta to Tk135 from Tk85-95.  A two-kg packet of flour has gone up from Tk120 to Tk142 and a kg of sugar from Tk85 to Tk90. In addition, the price of unroasted almonds increased by Tk20-30 per kg over the last seven days.

Prices of vegetables have remained almost unchanged except for tomatoes, which have not risen much in the last one week. Tomato prices have gone up from Tk40 per kg to Tk60 per kg.

Ali Hossain, a grocer in Karwan Bazar, told TBS, "With the increase in the prices of daily necessities, our sales are now lower than before. The demand is going down owing to rising prices, causing us to suffer."

The point-to-point inflation rate jumped by 0.07 percentage point in April to 6.29%, the highest in 18 months, mainly because of soaring commodity prices in the international market, appreciation of dollars globally and a rise in domestic household demand. 

The inflation rate for nonfood items stood at 6.39%, while food inflation was 6.24%.

The overall inflation was 6.22% in March.

Saima Haque Bidisha, research director at the South Asian Network on Economic Modelling, said the government needs to take an extensive programme for proper market management. It also must intensify its monitoring for keeping the commodity market stable. 

Strict punishment should be provided against illegal hoarders of goods, she also said, adding that imports, supplies, etc. should also be brought under regular monitoring.