December 02, 2006	Saturday	Ziqa'ad 10, 1427

KARACHI, Dec 1: Consumers paid higher price last month to buy onion, tomato, garlic, ghee and cooking oil, butter, and some pulses, while they enjoyed some relief by paying less for poultry products, moong, potato etc.

According to a price survey carried out (from Nov 1 to Dec 1) onion prices remained under pressure because of 90 per cent damage to the Sindh’s crop caused by torrential rains during July-September.

However, arrival of over 200,000 tons of Indian onion had somewhat bridged the gap between demand and supply but it could not entirely fulfil demand of over 250,000 tons of onion consumed in the country per month. Comparing with last month, onion prices remained high by Rs5 per kg.

Garlic rates had increased because of a flare-up in wholesale rates to Rs50 from Rs40 per kg. Dealers marketed the garlic, which they had bought at higher price from China.

Tomato prices surged as arrival from the new Sindh crop had yet to pick up momentum. Besides, rising winter had partially affected the crop maturation. The prices, however, plunged at the start of new Punjab’s crop.

The 16kg ghee and cooking oil tin had become costlier because of rising palm oil prices in Malaysia and Indonesia during the last two months. Consumers of branded items of multinational companies will have to pay higher prices as these companies are planning Rs4-5 per kg rise from next week.

Butter producers had also enhanced the rates. For instance, a small pack of New Town now costs Rs8 as compared to Rs6 earlier, while Nur Pur pack was available at Rs15 as compared to Rs12 per kg. In pulses, retailers were still charging higher rates despite a slowdown in wholesale prices. Chairman Karachi Wholesale Grocers’ Association (KWGA), Anis Majeed, expressed surprise over the retailers’ high- handedness in fleecing the consumers by charging the Ramazan rates in the markets. He claimed that the pulses rates had crashed by Rs4 to Rs5 per kg after Ramazan coupled with consumers’ shift over to fresh vegetables in winter season that had made the trading in pulses dull.

Quoting some examples of fall in prices, he said the wholesale rate of gram pulse is Rs38 per kg, Masur Rs35-36, and mash Rs55-58.

Poultry rates had fallen because of frequent supplies from the farms while higher egg demand continued to push up the rates.