March 29, 2002	Friday	Muharram 14, 1423

KARACHI, March 28: Prices of onion and tomato have gone up by 40 per cent and 50 per cent in the last few days as compared to prices prevailing in the first two weeks of the current month.

Onion prices surged to Rs13 per kg from Rs10 per kg, while in some areas retailers are charging Rs14 per kg. However, in some Punjab areas like Lahore, onion is selling at Rs1,600 to Rs1,800 per 100 kg.

Similarly the price of tomato has surged up to Rs24 per kg in various parts of the city. There has been a short supply from the producing areas in Sindh as Punjab is consuming most of the tomatoes of Sindh. The wholesale price of tomato in Subzi Mandi ranges between Rs15 to Rs16 per kg. Prices are likely to stabilize in May when new crop of tomato from Punjab finds its way into the markets.

The prices of onion have gone up due to lower crops as a result of water scarcity coupled with farmers reluctance to grow more crop this season as they suffered losses last year because of low prices. As a result, they have switched over to other crops or grew lower crop for this season.

A slight jump in demand of onion in Ashura further compounded the situation in the markets which are already facing shortage of the commodity due to slow arrivals from producing areas.

Onion prices had been unchanged for the last few months, maintaining at Rs8 per kg. Its wholesale prices now range between Rs11 to Rs11.50 per kg as compared to Rs8 to Rs9.50 per kg. In February, its wholesale prices were hovering between Rs4 to 5 per kg.

President Falahi Anjuman Wholesale Vegetable Market, Super Highway, Haji Shahjehan said that crops of Mirpur, Tando Allah Yar, Sanghar and Kunri have been finished and the current requirement of consumers are being met from some other producing areas like Thanaboola Khan and Badin.

The month of April will remain under pressure as the new crop from Punjab will commence from May. A sizable quantity of onion is also being provided to Punjab from Sindh’s Badin crop.

To overcome shortage, some parties in Karachi imported 40-50 tons of onion from Iran at the rate of Rs7 to 8 per kg in January but it was insufficient, he said.

However, some parties in Subzi Mandi imported 2,000 tons of onion from India in February. Its price in Subzi Mandi is Rs11.50 per kg. Five to six more ships are expected to arrive in next few weeks carrying 300 tons each, Shahjehan said.

An official in the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) said that exports of onion to Dubai, Malaysia and Sri Lanka have slowed down drastically since the prices have gone up in the local markets.

He said exports of onion from Pakistan have become uncompetitive as India, Turkey and Iran are offering much cheaper prices as compared to local exporters.

Pakistan exported 51,625 tons ($5.12 million) of onion in July-January 2001-2002 as compared to 39,270 tons ($6.64 million) in the same period of 2000-2001.