Businesses raise edible oil prices without govt approval: Sk Bashir

“The government has not raised edible oil prices, nor has it given any permission to businesses to do so. Businesses do not have the authority to increase prices without the ministry’s approval. If there are price discrepancies, the government will take necessary measures,” he said while speaking at an event in Purbachal on the recent hikes in soybean and palm oil prices.

Bashir Uddin said edible oil is a regulated product under the Ministry of Commerce and only the ministry has the authority to fix its prices. “The Tariff Commission determines edible oil prices based on a 14-year-old formula. Personally, I do not find this formula reasonable,” the adviser said.

He said the ministry has tasked two financial bodies — the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh (ICMAB) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB) — with reviewing edible oil prices in line with global market trends.

“On Monday, ICMAB submitted a draft report to the ministry. ICAB has not yet submitted any report. In this interim period, traders suddenly announced a price hike, which is completely illegal,” Bashir Uddin said.

He stated that the ministry will soon adjust edible oil prices after analyzing the reports from both institutes.

On Monday, the Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners and Vanaspati Manufacturers Association claimed that the new prices were set in consultation with the Ministry of Commerce and aligned with international market rates.

Bashir Uddin, however, clarified that no such approval was granted by the ministry.

According to the new rates set by businesses, bottled soybean oil has increased by Tk 6 per litre to Tk 195, while loose soybean oil went up by Tk 8 per litre to Tk 177.

Besides, a 5-litre bottle of soybean oil now costs Tk 945 after a Tk 23 hike, and loose palm oil has been raised from Tk 13 per litre to Tk 163, reports UNB.