Key Takeaways
- Millers have reduced prices for various flour varieties by Rs3 per kg.
- The reduction is attributed to the arrival of cheap rice-mixed flour from interior Sindh.
- Retail and roti prices have not been affected by the millers' price cut.
Millers in Karachi have reduced the prices of various flour varieties by Rs3 per kg, according to a report in Dawn Business. The reduction, however, has not brought any relief to consumers, as retail and roti prices remain unchanged.
A miller stated that the price cut is due to the arrival of cheap rice-mixed flour from interior Sindh, indicating that the wheat rate in the open market has remained almost unchanged at Rs125-130 per kg.
Despite the government’s plan to import 750,000 tonnes of grain in the coming months, millers did not link the reduction to any pre-market effect related to the expected arrivals of imported grain in November.
Roti makers have already increased the price of naan by Rs5 to Rs30-35 per piece, followed by Rs10 for sheermal, taftaan, and qulcha, while branded bread makers had raised the prices of bread and bakery items by 8% earlier this month.
Good-quality chapati is now priced at Rs20 per piece, and a tandoor operator described the Rs3 drop as a 'peanut' given the substantial price hike by flour millers since the new crop hit the markets in March to May.
The operator further stated, 'I do not know why the millers have reduced the rate despite rising transportation costs on account of a hike in diesel and LPG rates and an unchanged wheat rate in the open market.'
In the retail markets, the price of flour No 2.5, maida, and fine flour is Rs160, Rs170, and Rs180 per kg, respectively, showing no drop in prices. Branded five-kg fine flour bags are available at Rs950-1,000, as the city government appears reluctant to check and fix the prices of branded flour bags.
According to data from the Sensitive Price Index (SPI) for the week ending September 24, the national average price of a 20kg flour bag, a 10kg wheat bag, and one-kg of fine flour is Rs2,200-3,200, Rs1,269, and Rs155.84, respectively, compared to Rs1,810-2,740, Rs1,039, and Rs137 at the end of March.
An increase in the price of LPG by Rs30-40 to Rs400-420 per kg in the last few days will nullify the impact of the millers' price cut, according to a tandoor operator.
I do not know why the millers have reduced the rate despite rising transportation costs on account of a hike in diesel and LPG rates and an unchanged wheat rate in the open market.
A tandoor operator, Operator of a tandoor
