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Supply glut fails to tame prices of onion, garlic

Dwaipayan Barua, ctg
The wholesale prices of garlic and onion saw a downward trend at Khatunganj wholesale hub in the last couple of weeks because of ample supply.
However, the retail market is yet to see any impact of the supply glut.
Prices of garlic imported from China dropped by Tk 10 to Tk 12 per kg in the last two weeks.
Yesterday, the wholesalers were selling premium quality garlic atTk 38 a kg againstTk 50 two weeks ago.
Prices of average quality garlic came down to Tk 35 a kg against the previous price ofTk45.
The abundant supply is forcing the wholesalers to sell off the item at a reduced price, said Mohammad Faruk, director of wholesale firm Ira Traders at Hamidullah Market in the wholesale hub.
Besides the regular ones, some seasonal importers also brought in garlic targeting the Eid-ul-Azha market without assessing the real demand, he said.
Ziaur Rahman, an importer, said a bumper production of garlic in China this year caused the price to fall in the world's second-largest economy and encouraged many traders to import.
According to the Chittagong Customs
House, 56,471 tonnes of garlic worth Tk 402 crore were imported in 2017-18 compared to 29,359 tonnes worth Tk 426 crore in 2016-17.
The booking price of garlic in China was $525 per tonne in May, but it came down to $450 in July, Rahman said.
The import cost of the current stock of garlic fetched in July was Tk 41 to Tk 42 per kg but the item is now being sold atTk 35 toTk 38, he said.
Retailers at different kitchen markets in the port city are selling the imported garlic atTk 60 toTk 80 a kg.
Gias Uddin, a retailer at Karnaphuli CDA kitchen market, said they bought the item several weeks before the beginning of the
price fall. "That's why we are selling garlic at the older rates."
Wholesale prices of Indian onion in Khatunganj fell to Tk 25 to Tk 28 a kg in the span of a week, from Tk 32 to Tk34.
But retailers are selling the item at Tk35toTk38akg.
Atikul Atik, a consumer, said the price fall in the wholesale market has brought no good news for them as retailers are still charging high.
Retailers straightaway raise prices of different items whenever they become expensive in the wholesale market.
But when wholesale prices fall, the same retailers procrastinate using the previous stock as an excuse, the private banker said.