MARKET DEVELOPMENT
Refiners Cut Cooking Oil Prices By Tk 5 A Litre
Refiners Cut Cooking Oil Prices By Tk 5 A Litre
15/01/2016 (The Daily Star) - Refiners and traders have decided to cut the wholesale prices of cooking oil by Tk 5 a litre, with effect from tomorrow, which is expected to bring down retail prices as well.
The decision came from a meeting between Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed and leaders of Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners' and Vanaspati Manufacturers' Association at the secretariat in Dhaka yesterday.
“Businesses agreed to reduce the prices after I requested them to do so, as the prices in the world market have gone down,” the minister said in a statement.
After the meeting, City Group Chairman Fazlur Rahman, also a leader of the association, told reporters about the cuts in wholesale prices.
He also said the cuts in the wholesale prices will have a positive impact on retail prices.
Edible oil, both soybean and palm oil, is used widely in Bangladesh and fluctuations in its prices affect millions of consumers.
Bangladesh consumes around 1.8 lakh tonnes to 20 lakh tonnes of cooking oil a year.
Palm oil is imported from Malaysia and Indonesia and soybean oil from Argentina and Brazil, said Mostafa Kamal, chairman of Meghna Group of Industries, which sells edible oil under Meghna brand.
“Once the wholesale prices come down, the retail prices will follow suit, as the market is very competitive,” he said.
With international prices for palm oil, sunflower oil and soybean oil dropping this year on bumper harvests, major edible oil companies across the globe have cut prices for their higher-margin branded products, hoping to tempt buyers at a time when incomes are rising.
According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation, vegetable oil price went down 19 percent in 2015 over the previous year.
However, experts said consumers often do not get the benefit of a price fall in Bangladesh as the market is dominated by a few importers. The decline is not reflected in the retail market due to intermediaries and middlemen.
The decision came from a meeting between Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed and leaders of Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners' and Vanaspati Manufacturers' Association at the secretariat in Dhaka yesterday.
“Businesses agreed to reduce the prices after I requested them to do so, as the prices in the world market have gone down,” the minister said in a statement.
After the meeting, City Group Chairman Fazlur Rahman, also a leader of the association, told reporters about the cuts in wholesale prices.
He also said the cuts in the wholesale prices will have a positive impact on retail prices.
Edible oil, both soybean and palm oil, is used widely in Bangladesh and fluctuations in its prices affect millions of consumers.
Bangladesh consumes around 1.8 lakh tonnes to 20 lakh tonnes of cooking oil a year.
Palm oil is imported from Malaysia and Indonesia and soybean oil from Argentina and Brazil, said Mostafa Kamal, chairman of Meghna Group of Industries, which sells edible oil under Meghna brand.
“Once the wholesale prices come down, the retail prices will follow suit, as the market is very competitive,” he said.
With international prices for palm oil, sunflower oil and soybean oil dropping this year on bumper harvests, major edible oil companies across the globe have cut prices for their higher-margin branded products, hoping to tempt buyers at a time when incomes are rising.
According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation, vegetable oil price went down 19 percent in 2015 over the previous year.
However, experts said consumers often do not get the benefit of a price fall in Bangladesh as the market is dominated by a few importers. The decline is not reflected in the retail market due to intermediaries and middlemen.