Refiners for increasing soybean oil price by Tk 15 a litre

The Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners and Vanaspati Manufacturers Association has proposed a hike in the price of soybean oil by Tk 15 per litre.

The association sent a letter to the Ministry of Commerce in this regard on Tuesday, mentioning that the price of edible oil should go up considering the price hike of unrefined oil in the global market and the depreciation of taka against the USD.

Commerce Ministry Senior Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh said the refiners’ association has submitted a proposal and the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission will scrutinise it.

“We will make a decision following the recommendations of the tariff commission,” he added.

With the new proposal, bottled soybean oil will be Tk 193 per litre while a five-litre bottle will be retailed at Tk 955. Non-bottled soybean oil will be Tk 173 a litre.

ALSO READ — Soybean oil prices drop Tk14 a litre

Earlier on October 3, the Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners and Vanaspati Manufacturers Association reduced bottled soybean oil retail price by Tk 14 to Tk 178 per litre.

Besides, the price of a five-litre bottle of soybean oil was fixed at Tk 880, down from Tk 945, while non-bottled soybean oil was retailed at Tk 158 a litre, which was Tk 175 per litre.

According to the Ministry of Commerce, currently, there is a demand for 20 lakh tonnes of edible oil per year.

Of those, 2 lakh tonnes are procured from the local market and the remaining 18 lakh tonnes are being imported.