Leather market of Bogura in danger of recession

Leather traders of Bogura are worried about a recession in the city’s market during Eid-ul Azha due to the scarcity of capital.

According to the leather Bogura District Leather Traders Association, in the last five years, tannery owners of Dhaka have withheld around Tk 25 crore owed to them.

The association has fixed an amount of Tk 35-40 per square foot of cow skin.

Leather traders of Bogura expressed their frustrations as moneylenders are not lending them money on the pretext of not getting the dues from tannery owners of Dhaka.

Just as the arrears were not confirmed before Eid, many traders were unable to raise capital. As a result, they will not be able to buy leather this year.

Among the traders of Bogura city, Zahidur Rahman Khokon, Mirajul Islam, Liton Hossain and some others complained that some tannery owners and warehouse keepers in Dhaka are responsible for this situation.

For the last 5 years, the tannery owners bought leather from Bogura with the assurance of paying the due in a short time. But the tannery owners are withholding the money using various excuses.

This year the tannery owners have promised to pay in full after Eid, said some leather traders of Bogura complaining that they are being held hostage and forced to deal with the situation.

Bazlur Rahman, vice-president of the Bogura District Leather Traders Association, said most of the leather traders buy leather with loans from different places before Eid-ul-Azha.

They hope to repay the loan with the money from selling the leather to the tannery owners or storekeepers. But if they are not paid in time, the leather traders get burdened with debts and are forced to quit the business.

Meanwhile, as the price of leather falls, the process of storing it locally with salt has been hampered by rising wages for workers.

Bogura leather traders Mukul Hossain and Nurul Islam said the current price of a bag of salt is Tk 1,250 to 1,400. It costs about Tk 250 more along with the wages of the workers to process and store the skin. Added to that are transportation costs and interest on loans which increases the price to Tk 10-15 per square foot.

Abdul Matin Sarkar, general secretary of the Bogura District Leather Traders’ Association, said the capital crisis was a bigger problem than the rise or fall in leather prices.

“If some of the last few years’ debts of Tk 25 crore could have been obtained from tanneries and warehouse keepers, many traders could have bought leather on the day of Eid,” he said.