After several days of unrest, the capital and the rest of the country are starting to return to normal. Prices of vegetables, fish and chicken have begun to fall in the markets, but prices of local fruit such as mango, guava and papaya are still rising. Sellers have raised prices on the grounds that supply has fallen.
Mango prices up in a week
Visits to various markets in the capital on Friday, 26 July, found that local fruit is beyond ordinary people's reach even at the height of the season, when in other years it cost about half as much at this time. Sellers were asking Tk 180 to 200 for large Langra mangoes, while small Langra sold for Tk 140 to 150. A week earlier, large Langra sold for Tk 150 and small for Tk 120.
BARI mangoes, which sold for Tk 80 a week ago, now sell for Tk 130 to 150. Surma Fazli, sold for Tk 70 to 80 a week ago, now sells for Tk 130. Fazli, which sold for Tk 90 a week ago, now sells for Tk 140.
Prices of latkan, dragon fruit, guava and papaya have also risen. Latkan sold for Tk 120 a week ago and now sells for Tk 160 to 170. Dragon fruit, which sold for Tk 250 to 300, now sells for Tk 300 to 400. Guava is up Tk 20 a kg at Tk 80 to 100, and papaya is up Tk 20 to 30 a kg at Tk 130 to 150.
Prices of pineapple, amra (hog plum), jambura (pomelo) and jackfruit are unchanged. Depending on size, a pair of pineapples sells for Tk 50 to 80 in the capital's markets. Amra sells for Tk 60 to 80 a kg. A jambura sells for Tk 40 to 50 each, though small ones were seen selling for Tk 30 in some areas.
Buyers and sellers disagree
Buyers and sellers have mixed reactions to the rapid rise in seasonal fruit prices. Sellers say supply has fallen in the market, so fruit prices have risen. Buyers say opportunistic traders have used the curfew to raise prices in the hope of bigger profits.
Borhan Uddin, a buyer at Segunbagicha market, told Jago News that fruit prices were lower even a week ago. Even when there was disorder on the roads, prices of mango, guava and other fruit had fallen. Now the curfew has been made an excuse to raise prices, he said, and a traders' syndicate is behind it.
Seller Tariq Abedin rejected the buyer's allegation. He told Jago News that many vehicle owners are afraid to come to Dhaka with goods, leaving a shortage in the market. Higher wholesale prices have affected retail prices, he said.
Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
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