December 3, 2002	Tuesday	Ramazan 27,1423

KARACHI, Dec 2: Prices of meat, poultry products and tomato went up in the last one month while markets saw either downward trend or stability in prices of other essential items as a result of improvement or steady supplies from the producing area and import.

A market survey (from November 1 to December 1) revealed a price hike in mutton to Rs 150-160 per kg as compared to Rs 130- 140 per kg prior to Ramazan. Similarly, meat with bones (bachia cow) also increased to Rs85-90 per kg from Rs75-80 per kg.

The City government has been trying to pressurise the meat merchants for the last 10 days to bring the prices at pre-Ramazan level, but without results.

Poultry live bird prices shot up to Rs54 per kg from Rs48 per kg followed by rise in its meat prices to Rs95 per kg from Rs75-80 per kg. Egg prices also rose to Rs33 per dozen from Rs26- 27 per dozen. Price regulators had also asked the poultry farmers to cut prices by Rs2 per kg at wholesale levels, but to no avail.

The meeting between poultry associations and city government held on Monday to discuss the price cut before Eid, but the meeting remained inconclusive.

The last month saw increase in tomato prices to Rs13-16 per kg from Rs8-10 per kg. A dealer said that the price hike was due to slow supply from some producing areas of Sindh. The situation would improve in the next few days as the supplies from Sindh’s main producing areas will gain momentum.

A major decline was seen in price of onion to Rs5.50-6 per kg from 9-10 per kg as a result of frequent supplies from new Sindh crop.

Potato prices remained stable at Rs9-12 per kg as a result of persistent arrivals from Punjab’s cold storages.

The price of garlic (arriving from China, Singapore and local crop) also fell to Rs36 per kg from Rs40 per kg, while the rates of ginger, being imported from Singapore and China, caved in to Rs28 per kg from Rs40 per kg.

President Falahi Anjuman Wholesale Vegetable Market, New Subzi Mandi, Haji Shahjehan said that prices had been stable in the current Ramazan as a result of low offtake by the buyers. He said majority of essential greens are currently in ample supplies and the wholesale market has no shortage of any commodity.

In pulses, the price of gram pulse (good quality) dropped to Rs33 per kg from Rs36 per kg while black gram prices plunged to Rs30 per kg from Rs32 per kg. Kabuli channa, which was selling at Rs35-42 per kg ahead of Ramazan, now declined to Rs27-32 per kg.

The price of arhar, which was selling at Rs32 per kg, fell to Rs28-31 per kg while masur pulse saw a fall to Rs28-31 per kg from Rs34 per kg. Mung was now being retailed at Rs24-27 per kg from Rs30-32 per kg while mash pulse was now being sold at Rs25-28 per kg from Rs30-35 per kg.

Rupee’s gaining strength against the dollar, stability in world markets and import in bulk by wholesalers ahead of Ramazan could be attributed to the declining trend in domestic pulses prices, a retailer said.

In flour varieties, the price of atta No. 2.5 came down to Rs10 per kg from Rs11-12 per kg while fine atta price also saw a drop of Re1 per kg to Rs11 per kg from Rs12 per kg. The decline in atta price could be linked to cut in wheat bag prices to Rs750 from Rs827 on 100 kg bag by the Sindh government.

Various varieties of rice had depicted a downward drive in prices. Retail price of Irri-6, which was hovering at Rs14-15, was now being retailed at Rs12.50 per kg. Irri-9 was still selling at Rs18 per kg. Basmati Kernal prices nosedived to Rs30-32 per kg from Rs40-45 per kg.

Sugar price had remained unchanged at Rs22 per kg. Its wholesale price is Rs19 per kg.