KARACHI, May 1: Except for price hike in loose ghee and cooking oil, tomato, rice and red chillies, consumers might have been taken a sigh of relief last month owing to decline or stability in prices of pulses, flour varieties, sugar, chicken, vegetables etc.

A market survey (from April 1 to May 1) conducted by Dawn showed that the price of ghee and cooking oil (loose) surged to Rs1,180 per 16-kg tin as compared to Rs1,055 a month back on fluctuations in international palm oil rates. Similarly, loose ghee price also rose to Rs73 per kg from Rs65 per kg.

Branded packers, who have already made three increases since September 2006, however are flexing their muscles to jack up rates again in case the palm olein prices in Malaysia and Indonesia continue to fly up.

The Pakistan Vanaspati Manufacturers Association (PVMA) has been asking the government for the last six months to reduce import duties and taxes on palm olein to provide some relief to consumers, but the government is not willing to take hit on its revenues.

Tomato prices showed an increase of Rs10 per kg, while other vegetables had either declined or remained pegged to their previous levels due to better supplies.

In pulses, gram pulse saw a fall of Rs3 per kg at Rs35. However, its wholesale rate ranged Rs28-30 per kg. Arrival from new crop had started in the markets and traders were expecting a good crop of 800,000 tons this year as compared to 350,000 tons last year. PASSCO has also entered the market to procure 200,000 tons in order to keep its prices stable in Ramazan.

Chairman Karachi Wholesale Grocers Association (KWGA) Anis Majeed told Dawn that gram pulse was also being exported to the Middle East, Sri Lanka and Gulf countries. In the last two months, some 5,000 tons had been exported.

In moong, the Sindh crop would start arriving from July and production is expected at 40,000 tons. In masur, international prices had surged to $560 per ton from $440 a month back. India was reported to have purchased 40,000-50,000 tons from Canada at $540 per ton.

He said that arrival of masur crop from Punjab would remain low between 10,000-15,000 tons this year as against the expectation of 30,000-40,000 tons.

According to figures of Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS), pulses import stood at 440,529 tons ($202m) in July-March 2006-2007 as compared to 353,146 tons ($125m) in the same period last year.

Mr Anis said that out of total imports the share of yellow peas was over 200,000 tons followed by 80,000 tons of black gram, masur, chic peas etc.

The city government for checking profiteering has also issued a price list of 66 items comprising pulses, rice and spices etc., but this list is being displayed only by those shopkeepers whose names have been printed on it otherwise a large number of shopkeepers have rejected the list terming it ‘unrealistic’.

Prices of chicken have declined owing to improved supplies. A trader said that so far there had been no fear among consumers over birdflu cases detected in some farms of the city.