The price of kerosene oil registered an unusual hike at the retail level in the city markets Friday a day after the government set its tariff only marginally higher to curb smuggling and reduces losses, traders said. The government raised Thursday the price of kerosene and diesel by Tk 3.0 to Tk 23 per litre to make up losses due to price hike of the petroleum products in the international market. The government says the move will also discourage smuggling of the oil products out of country. But the traders said kerosene was being sold between Tk 26 and Tk 28 per litre Friday. In the previous week it was sold between Tk 20 and Tk 22 per litre at the retail level. The traders admitted that the shooting up of the essential fuel like kerosene was hurting the poor people in slums and villages. However, the prices of other essential commodities, including rice and vegetables, have remained unchanged since last week, they said. But the traders warned an imminent impact on the commodity prices as the hike in the prices of diesel might push the transportation cost higher. In the rice markets, the BRRI variety of rice was selling between Tk 490 and Tk 500 per mound over the last week at wholesale level, unchanged from previous week. The traders said at the wholesale level Lata-28 variety of rice was selling between Tk 560 and Tk 570 per mound, Minicate variety of rice was selling between Tk 700 and Tk 710 per mound, unchanged from the previous week. The most popular Paari variety of rice was being sold between Tk 570 and Tk 580 per mound over the last week. Nazirshail variety of rice was selling between Tk 670 and Tk 680 per mound. In the retail markets, different varieties of coarse rice were selling between Tk 16 and Tk 18 per kg over the last week. The traders said finer varieties of rice were being sold between Tk 20 and Tk 22 per kg, unchanged from the previous week. At the vegetable markets potato was selling between Tk 7.0 and Tk 8.0 per kg unchanged from the previous week. Brinjal was being sold between Tk 10 and Tk 12 per kg unchanged from the previous week. The vegetable traders said bitter gourd was being sold between Tk 10 and Tk 12 per kg unchanged from the previous week. Tomato was selling between Tk 10 and Tk 14 per kg and different varieties of beans were being sold between Tk 10 and Tk 12 per kg at retail level in the city markets over the last week. Flour in one kg packet was being sold between Tk 19 and Tk 20 per kg, unchanged from the previous week. On the other hand, two-kg packet of flour was selling between Tk 38 and Tk 40, unchanged from the previous week. Canned edible oil of different brands containing five litres were selling between Tk 265 and Tk 270 at the retail levels unchanged from the previous week. Sugar was selling between Tk 30 and 32 per kg while pulses ranged between Tk 40 and Tk 44 per kg in the city markets over the last week, traders said. Poultry birds were selling between Tk 65 and Tk 70 per kg during the last week, the traders said.
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