In the face of severe oppostion criticism in parliament for his alleged failure to control price hike of the essential commodities Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Monday offered to resign if  the prime minister gives the responsibility of running the ministry to one of the opposition MPs. Gonoforum MP Mokabbir Khan fired the first shot against Tipu Munshi during the discussion on proposed  cut motion on the Ministry of Commerce in the budget for FY2023-24. Jatiya Party MPs also criticised the commerce minister for the rising prices of daily products. They also raised the question whether the 'business' minister, Tipu Munshi, is involved with the market syndicate or not. Cow rawhide price increases by 6 percent this year: Tipu Munshi Rustam Ali Faraji of Jatiya Party said in the discussion on the retrenchment proposal, what does the monitoring cell of the ministry do?  “Such a big ministry. If the minister does not have dynamism then the price will increase. If only one person works and everyone sleeps, then the country will not run. Market syndicates should be broken up. It is certainly possible if desired. But if you think the business belongs to me then it is sad for the country and its people.” Jatiya Party's Shamim Haider Patwari said that even though the commodity prices have decreased in global markets in the last few months, it is not affecting the country.  Avoid excessive buying to keep markets stable: Commerce Minister “Inflation in Bangladesh was 6 percent now it seems to be 10 percent. It is growing. Inflation is eating away people's income. Due to inflation, soap, bread are all getting smaller," he said. He mentioned that making the government budget and household budget are not the same thing.  He said that the budget of the government is decreasing and due to this rice, pulses, oil, chicken size and meat pitches are getting smaller.  “The economy of Bangladesh is trapped in a vicious cycle of inflation. The government should take steps to overcome this," he said. “There are syndicates. There is no doubt about it. That syndicates are powerful. But are they stronger than the government? I don't think they can be stronger than the government. If there is a syndicate within the government, it must be identified," he said. Bangladesh allows green chilli import as price keeps rising He said that the minister has a vast business.  “He is a successful businessman. I believe that if he is given the freedom to act, then he can definitely control it," said he. Gonoforum MP Mokabbir Khan said that the most unsuccessful ministry of the current government is the Ministry of Commerce.  “When you go to the market, you hear from people that the Ministry of Commerce is so unsuccessful that people call it a syndicate friendly ministry.” With higher spice prices, consumers feeling the pinch this Eid-ul-Azha Alleging the involvement of a syndicate of traders to increase the price of goods, Mokabbir said that many people said that the commerce minister was involved. “Why don't you resign after all this?” Mokabbir asked the the commerce minister. Mokabbir said that when the commerce minister says that the price of a product will decrease, the price of that product increases the next day.  He said that he knows that the minister will not give any answer. Spice prices soar in Faridpur ahead of Eid-ul-Azha Jatiya Party Member of Parliament Roshan Ara Mannan said that people get upset when they go to the market.  “The Ministry of Commerce is not monitoring the market properly. The commerce minister is a freedom fighter. Why can't he control the market ?” Jatiya Party lawmaker Pir Fazlur Rahman said that the minister of state for industries said that people cry when they go to market, and the only reason is the syndicate. “People also understand this. The Russia-Ukraine war alone should not be blamed for the rise in commodity prices. The syndicate has looted thousands of rupees in the egg market. Chicken eggs do not come from Ukraine.” Forex reserves likely to increase due to govt steps: PM Hasina tells Parliament He said that the commerce minister has said that some traders are taking advantage of the product prices.  “Our commerce minister can not arrest the syndicate people who raise prices. He himself is a businessman. He knows which businessmen are doing it. So are these businessmen close to him, which is why he can't catch the syndicate businessmen?” He demanded that the commerce minister should say publicly why he is not able to do that. Pir Fazlu said that Tk 1500 crore has been looted in the onion market.  “A few companies are looting Tk 17 crore daily in the sugar market. Thousands of crores of taka has been looted in boiler chicken market in a month and a half. The commerce minister can't do anything.” Tipu Munshi said that it is possible to take actions against the market syndicate including jail and fine.  “There is talk of syndicate. It's just that big groups do a lot of business together. We need to focus - we jailed, fined. That might be possible. But it will be difficult for us to bear the sudden crisis. That's why we try to stay within the rules through discussion,” he said. Referring to his involvement in politics long before coming to business,  Tipu said, "One thing that comes up time and again is that I am a businessman and businessmen are taking advantage of me. I don't know how many years of experience they have in politics. But I have been in politics for 56 years. I have been in business for 40/42 years now.” Responding to Mokabbir's demand, the minister said, "Someone here asked me to resign. I will tell the honorable prime minister that if he (Mokabbir) takes responsibility, she can relieve me and give the responsibility to him. I have no problem.” Tipu said that the price has increased and the prime minister repeatedly says that people are suffering.  He mentioned that the global situation has affected the country, not the internal causes. “we have to take that into consideration." Talking about the onion price, the minister said, there is no doubt that the price has increased. Onions have been mentioned. We discussed with the Ministry of Agriculture and decided that farmers should get a price that encourages them to grow.  He mentioned that in onion, the country has a shortfall of 6 to 7 lakh tonnes every year.  “Farmers will focus on production if the price is better. By this step our deficit is reduced by half. But it should not be exactly Tk 80 to 90 per kg. That is why we have arranged the import," he said  He said that the government did not want to import onion for ensuring fair price to the local farmers.  “But we imported on the instructions of the prime minister. Imported Indian onions are now Tk 40/45 per kg. Today, the price of our desi onion is Tk 65. I think it should be reduced further. we are trying. Within 10/15 days it will come to within Tk 50 a kg” The minister said that everything is not fixed by the Ministry of Commerce.  “I am still taking responsibility and we are trying our best to do what we can," he stated. Regarding sugar price surge, he said  he has requested the prime minister to reduce the duty structure to bring down the price within Tk 100 a kg.    

Europe's inflation rate dipped at the start of the year, giving some relief to consumers but still leaving them facing higher prices that have driven protests and will likely press the European Central Bank into another interest rate hike Thursday. The consumer price index for the 20 countries that use the euro currency reached 8.5% in January compared with a year earlier, European Union statistics agency Eurostat said Wednesday. That's down from the annual rate of 9.2% in December. It's the first report on consumer prices that includes data from Croatia, which joined the eurozone on Jan. 1, but lacked unavailable figures from Germany, Europe's biggest economy. Inflation in Europe has now slowed for the third month in a row, falling from a record high of 10.6% in October. Food and energy prices are persisting as the major factors driving up European inflation. Prices for food, alcohol and tobacco rose at a 14.1% annual pace in January, while energy prices rose 17.2%. Russia's war in Ukraine has shaken up food and energy markets, and while commodity prices have fallen from all-time highs last year, consumers are not yet seeing relief on their utility and grocery bills. Natural gas prices have dropped from records last summer thanks to a scramble to find supplies outside Russia and warmer winter weather that eased energy demand for heating. While Europe may have dodged fears of energy rationing and shortages after Russia cut off most supplies, natural gas prices are still three times higher than before Russia started massing troops on Ukraine’s border. The energy upheaval has made the cost-of-living squeeze more painful in continental Europe and the United Kingdom than in the U.S., leading to protests and strikes from workers in several countries seeking pay that keeps pace with inflation. U.S. annual inflation dropped to 6.5% in December, while the U.K. reading of 10.5% signaled how the British economy was a striking exception to the International Monetary Fund's brighter outlook for 2023. Read more: Europe's inflation slows again but cost of living still high In the eurozone, so-called core inflation, which doesn't include volatile food and energy costs, held steady at 5.2% last month, underlining how prices also are rising for both services and goods such as clothing, appliances, cars and computers. Germany’s inflation number wasn’t available because of a technical issue so an estimate was used. Economists said that means the inflation figure should be taken with a pinch of salt. Still, “when it comes to monetary policy, this is just noise,” Jack Allen-Reynolds of Capital Economics said in a report. “The core inflation rate is sending a clear signal: underlying price pressures remain strong.” With inflation far above its target of 2%, the ECB has been raising interest rates that make it more expensive for consumers to borrow money. Aiming to get price spikes under control, the central bank is expected to institute another half-point hike Thursday. That will come a day after a decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve and the same day the Bank of England acts on borrowing costs. The central bank moves to cool inflation also strain the economy, with Europe eking out just 0.1% growth in the final three months of last year and 3.5% for all of 2022. That outpaced the 2.1% expansion in the U.S. and China’s 3% growth last year.

Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) has urged the government to readjust edible oil prices in the country following their continuous downward trend in the international market. SM Nazer Hossain, Vice-President of the CAB central committee made the call through a statement on Saturday. In the statement, Nazer said Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (BTTC) should readjust the prices of edible oil as the price of this daily essential is decreasing regularly in the international market.  He also blamed the BTTC for its reluctance every time for the edible oil price adjustment. Alleging that BTTC only works for the interest of the businessmen, the CAAB vice president said, when prices of edible oil go up in the international market, BTTC raises the price in the local market. But when, price decreases in the international market, it does not show interest to readjust the prices. The statement said the prices of edible oil went ups and down five times from October last year to June this year, while Bangladesh has hiked the oil price in three phases. Read: Edible oil prices to come down soon: Commerce Secretary On May 5, 2022, the government approved a fresh hike in the prices of soybean and palm oil by Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners & Vanaspati Manufacturers Association on grounds of an increase in the global market. BVOVMA fixed bottled soybean oil at Tk 198 per litre while loose soybean oil at Tk 180 per litre. It means bottled soybean oil price increases by Tk 38 per litre and loose soybean oil price up by Tk 44 per litre.

The prices of edible oil are likely to drop within a day or two due to fall in prices in global market, said secretary to the Commerce Ministry Tapan Kanti Ghosh on Sunday. “Good news will come in a day or two about the prices of edible oil. We are focusing on re-fixing the prices of edible oil and the Tariff Commission will sit with the oil refining companies to fix the new prices,” he said. Read: TCB to procure soyabean oil, lentil and sugar from business groups Tapan revealed this information while responding to a question from reporters at a press briefing organised on the occasion of the 12th Ministerial Conference of World Trade Organisation at the secretariat. Bangladesh import soybean oil from Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina and it takes 45 to 60 days to arrive in Bangladesh, he said. Read:Soybean oil price goes up again On June 9, bottled soybean oil price jumped to Tk205 per litre.

Fixed income group and lower middle class people are struggling to cope with soaring prices of edible oil, rice, flour, eggs, onions, sugar, lentils, meat and fish. Though the Directorate of National Consumers Right Protection (DNCRP) is focusing on controlling the price of edible oil, other commodities are selling at a higher price. Without any valid reason prices of these are being hiked twice in a week, said advocate Humayun Kabir Bhuiyan, General Secretary, Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB). “Soybean prices are being discussed and criticized across the country for various reasons such as shortage of supply, stockpiling, manipulation of mill owners, high profitability of sellers. The government should work to monitor and make decisions on the situation on the ground,” he told UNB. The reality is not just edible oil, prices of all products are going up, he said. Also read: Govt doing its best to rein in prices of essential commodities: PM The non-governmental organization Consumers Forum (CF) has analyzed the wholesale market from January to March this year.

Prices of beef and all kinds of chicken have shot up  in the capital's kitchen markets  ahead of Eid-ul -Fitr with the rise in demand. The price of beef has increased by Tk 30 to Tk 50  to Tk 700-750 per kg while prices of all kinds of chicken went up by Tk 20 to Tk 30 per kg in the capital on Sunday. Visiting  kitchen markets in different areas   including Khilgaon, Malibag, Shantinagar, Rampura Basabo, the UNB correspondent found  that the traders are selling beef at Tk 700 (average) per kg to Tk 750 (premier quality) per kg. Also read: Govt doing its best to rein in prices of essential commodities: PM Beef  is selling  at Tk 750 per kg at meat shops in Mugda area though the list shows the price at Tk700 per kg.Traders said  from the first to the 26th of Ramadan, the rate was Tk 650 to Tk 680 per kg and from Friday beef is being sold at Tk700 per kg due to rise in demand during Eid like the previous years. Besides,  high cattle prices  and their high carrying costs have pushed up beef prices ,  they said. Yaqub, a resident of Shantinagar ,who came to the market to buy beef said that the price goes up every day. Also read: Beef, mutton prices go up in Sylhet "At the beginning of Ramadan I bought one kg of beef at Tk 650. I bought it today (Sunday) at Tk750. We have nothing to say,” he said. Besides, the price of broiler chicken has gone up. Sohag, a chicken trader at Kaptan Bazar, said  he sold broiler chicken at Tk 170 per kg on  Saturday which is Tk 190 per kg today. “I sold it at Tk 160 per kg a week ago. Sonali and layer chicken prices have also increased. Today (Sunday)  Sonali (cock) chickens are being sold at Tk350 to Tk360 per kg, which was between Tk 290 to Tk 300 per kg at the beginning of Ramadan.” Layer (red) chicken  is being sold at Tk280 per kg white layer chicken at Tk250 per kg.

The commerce minister Tipu Munshi MP on Sunday said there is no possibility of shortage of any goods during the Ramadan as there is enough stock. The prices of almost all goods have remained stable and it will continue, as the ministry is working against illegal stocking and creating panic in the markets, he said. The minister came up with the remarks while addressing a press briefing after visiting Karwan Bazar, the largest kitchen market in the capital on Sunday. Also read: Prices of essentials to stay tolerable during Ramadan: PM Tipu Munshi said the consumers are getting benefits from the tax reduction and tax withdrawing on essential commodities.

Shares were mostly lower in Asia on Friday after Wall Street extended a rally into a third day and oil prices pushed higher, surpassing $105 per barrel. Tokyo and Sydney advanced while Hong Kong, Shanghai and Seoul declined. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for more help for his country after days of bombardment of civilian sites in multiple cities over the past few days. The war, and plans for President Joe Biden to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping later Friday were among the uncertainties overhanging markets. READ: Gazette issued reducing VAT on edible oil import The White House said the conversation will center on “managing the competition between our two countries as well as Russia’s war against Ukraine and other issues of mutual concern.” Wrapping up a two-day meeting, the Bank of Japan opted to keep its monetary policy unchanged, with its benchmark interest rate at minus 0.1%. Japan's central bank has been keeping interest rates ultra low and pumping tens of billions of dollars into the world's third largest economy for years, trying to spur faster growth. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index rose 0.1% to 26,667.23 and the S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney gained 0.3%, to 7,275.30. But Hong Kong's Hang Seng sank 2.6% to 20,952.53 after barreling higher for two days after Chinese leaders promised to provide more support for the economy and markets, suggesting Beijing might temper its crackdowns on technology and real estate companies. The Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.3% to 3,205.90. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 climbed 1.2% on Thursday, closing at 4,411.67, after surging more than 2% in each of the prior two days for its best back-to-back performance in nearly two years. Big swings in markets have become the norm as investors struggle to handicap what will happen to the economy and the world’s already high inflation because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, higher interest rates from central banks around the world and renewed COVID-19 worries in various hotspots. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.2% to 34,480.76. The Nasdaq rose 1.3% to 13,614.78. The tech-heavy index is on pace for its biggest weekly gain in more than a year. Smaller company stocks outpaced the broader market. The Russell 2000 index surged 1.7% to 2,065.02. The market’s latest gains come after the Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate Wednesday for the first time since 2018, something Wall Street had been expecting for months. A barrel of U.S. crude oil gained $2.58 to $105.56 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It jumped 8.4% on Thursday to settle at $102.98. Brent crude, the international standard, added $2.42 to $109.06 per barrel in London. It leaped 8.8% to settle at $106.64 per barrel. Prices have been careening on doubts over both supplies of and demand for oil. After briefly topping $130 early last week, a barrel of U.S. crude fell to nearly $94 a barrel on Wednesday. But reports of a sale of Russian crude oil to India and apparent setbacks in peace talks between Ukraine and Russia have renewed concern over possible shortfalls in supplies. Asked about the reports India was buying oil from Russia at a discounted price, India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi did not directly confirm or deny them. “India imports most of its oil requirements," Bagchi said. “We are exploring all possibilities in the global energy market. I don’t think Russia has been a major oil supplier to India.” He also noted that European countries are importing oil from Russia. Dribbles of news about the state of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine have caused many of the sharp reversals. So too recently have worries about economic shutdowns in China because of surges in COVID-19 infections, which could hit demand for energy. On Thursday, the Chinese government said companies in Shenzhen, a major business center, will be allowed to reopen while efforts to contain coronavirus outbreaks progress. Their earlier closures had rattled financial markets. A wave of better-than-expected reports on the U.S. economy Thursday may also have helped markets. Fewer workers applied for unemployment claims last week, and builders broke ground on more homes last month than economists expected. In other trading, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.17% from 2.20% late Thursday. The dollar rose to 118.78 Japanese yen from 118.60 yen. The euro fell to $1.1082 from $1.1092.

Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi has said the government is forming a taskforce to monitor essentials' prices, and to conduct a nationwide drive against illegal hoarding. The minister informed reporters of the development after an inter-ministerial meeting held at the Secretariat on Sunday afternoon to set a work plan for reining in the prices of essential items, despite record food stocks in the government's warehouses. Moreover, the Commerce Minister said that the number of TCB trucks selling essential goods in Dhaka has been increased to 150, from 50. Overall across the country, the number of such trucks will be increased to 1000 from 500. Also read: Also read: Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal presided over the inter-ministerial meeting. After the two-hour meeting, Munshi told reporters that the impact of the Ukraine-Russia war had been felt in Bangladesh as well. However, he also said many dishonest traders are taking advantage of this. Strict instructions have been given to the law enforcement agencies in the meeting to monitor markets so that prices do not get out of hand. Also read: Ministers 'joking' with people about price hike: BNP Top officials of the administration including Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, Agriculture Minister Dr. Mohammad Abdur Razzaqu and Police Chief Benazir Ahmed were present at the meeting. Recently, the prices of soybean oil, onion and other essential commodities have been rising uncontrollably. Also read: Slashing VAT, taxes on essential commodities during Ramadan under consideration: Home Minister   There has been a huge reaction among the common people, who are not at all pleased to be confronted with such runaway inflation, before they could even recover fully from the pandemic's hit . People from all walks of life are expressing their anger. Various protest programs are also going on in the political arena over the issue.

The Directorate of National Consumers’ Rights Protection (DNCRP), under the Commerce Ministry, will launch a special drive in the wholesale market in March to keep prices of  commodities under control in the Holy Ramadan. AHM Shafiquzzaman, Director General (Additional Secretary) of DNCRP, came up with the disclosure in an exchange meeting held on Tuesday with the leaders of various business organizations of wholesale and retail market in the capital. The meeting was attended by Monjur Mohammad Shahriar, director of the department, deputy directors  Atia Sultana, Afroza Rahman, and Bikash Chandra Das and leaders of various trade organizations of wholesale and retail markets of Dhaka including Karwan Bazar, Moulvibazar and Shyambazar. READ: No hike in edible oil prices in 15 days, readjustment after that: Minister The DG of DNCRP has expressed satisfaction on the current stock situation of daily commodities. The price of oil has been fixed and will remain in force till the Ramadan and Eid.  “We have informed the traders today (Tuesday) that those who will buy and sell the goods must keep a receipt of how much they bought the goods for. Action will be taken immediately if there is any evidence of selling products at higher prices in the campaign. Jail or fine will be faced according to the law,” said Monjur Mohammad Shahriar, director of DNCRP. Talking with UNB regarding the meeting, Monjur Shahriar said the DNCRP would conduct a special operation from March to keep the prices of daily commodities stable during the upcoming month of Ramadan.