The government has not increased the prices of edible oil, said Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Commerce is responsible for setting edible oil prices. "I want to make it clear to the nation through you that oil price increases are decided by the Ministry of Commerce," he said while speaking at an event in Purbachal on the recent hikes in soybean and palm oil prices.
Bashir Uddin said, "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 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."
TF
