Economy, Featured
By Anayo Ezugwu
AHEAD of Eid El Kabir on Friday, July 31, prices of food items are on the increase in some major markets across Lagos and its environs. Many of the traders attributed the price increase to the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
They said the lockdown that followed the outbreak of the virus in the country affected products as well as the supply of produce to the market. Investigation revealed that the prices of different brands of a 20-litre of vegetable oil are sold for from N3,000 to N32,000, depending on the brand. Similarly, a 25-litre of palm oil, which formerly costs N9,000, is now selling for N10,500; traders attributed the increase in the palm oil price to the rainy season.
At these markets, the price of tomato had gone up, with a big basket of the commodity that sold for between N8,000 and N10,000 recently, now sells for N14,000 and is expected to go up in the coming days.
Similarly, the biggest basket of bell pepper (Tatashe) has increased from N8,000 to N12,000, while a basket of long red pepper (chilly) now sells for N7,000, as against the previous price of N5,000. A basket of Habanero/scotch bonnet pepper (atarodo) also went up to N12,000 from its former price of N8,500.
A jute bag of onions has increased similarly from N10,000 to N14,000 for the fresh ones, while the dried type of the commodity now goes for N18,000 from N15,000. The survey further indicates that the prices of different brands of food items such as rice and semolina remained the same.
Realnews observed that 50 kilogramme of local rice now sells for an average of N22,000 from an initial price of N20,000. The price of 10 kilogramme of Semovita is, however, constant at N3,500. A big bag of melon now sells for an average of N46,000 from an initial N44,800 before the celebration.
Mallam Gwandu, a tomato seller in one of the markets, said there was nothing the traders could do as the cost of transportation of these commodities had increased. “We pay a high price for transportation and we stop at every checkpoint. All these added together will bring about an increase in the prices of the goods. It’s a big problem leading to increases in prices,’’ he said.
Anike Adesola, a rice seller, noted that sales are very low, and attributed it to the effect of the lockdown. She said, however, that the civil servants had been keeping the markets going.
“We thank the president for paying salaries as and when due, because it’s the civil servants that keep the markets going. They are now being paid regularly, it has given them the opportunity to buy,” she said.
Confirming the situation, the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, said food prices were increasing astronomically. The NBS in its latest report entitled: “Selected Food Prices Watch – June 2020,” said the average price of 1kg of yam tuber increased year-on-year by 37.63 percent and month on month by 5.83 percent to N250.70 in June 2020 from N236.90 in May.
During the month under review, NBS said the “average price of 1kg of rice (imported high quality sold loose) increased year-on-year by 35.97 percent and increased month-on-month by 3.57 percent to N479.74 in June 2020 from N463.21 in May 2020.
The report said the average price of 1kg of tomato increased year-on-year by 30.25 percent and month-on-month by 5.84 percent to N294.46 in June from N278.23 in May this year.
It added that selected food price watch data for June reflected that the average price of one dozen of agric eggs medium size decreased year-on-year by -4.54 percent and increased month-on-month by 2.24 percent to N472.83 in June from N462.46 in May, while the average price of the piece of agric eggs medium size (price of one) increased year-on-year by 7.30 percent and month-on-month by 3.28 percent to N42.18 in June 2020 from N40.84 in May 2020.
NBS had earlier said the inflation rate of the country rose to 12.56 percent during the month under review (year-on-year), 0.16 percent points higher than the rate recorded in May 2020 (12.4 percent). Its report also showed that composite food index rose to 15.18 percent compared to 15.04 percent recorded in May 2020, while core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce that stood at 10.13 percent in June 2020 compared to 10.12 percent recorded in May.
Reacting to the development, Muda Yusuf, director-general, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, said the rising prices of food were, perhaps, the worst enemy of the poor. He added the increase has eroded purchasing power and aggravates lack. He, therefore, called for monetary and fiscal measures to tackle the menace, while noting that the efforts of the monetary authorities to unveil stimulus packages cannot be ignored.
– Jul. 24, 2020 @ 15:59 GMT |
Tags: Eid-El Kabir: Food prices on the increase
