On Tuesday (6 August) chicken meat was available in the retail markets at Rs 280 per kg and live chicken was being sold at Rs 150 per kg, which has now touched Rs 360 per kg and Rs 200 per kg, respectively. Leading wholesalers and retailers of the commodity have attributed the sharp increase in chicken meat rates in the country due to increase in demand and consumption of the commodity due to Eid.
Before the start of Ramazan chicken meat was available in the retail markets at Rs 240 to Rs 260 per kg, but over the period of time even lower segment of the population took advantage of the marked dip in its rates, and since then persistent increase in its rates has pushed its prices to the highest level as demand of the commodity has nose dived.
During the past 6 months the commodity price has increased by Rs 150 per 20kg bag and this time around the millers are all set to increase the flour price on two counts firstly on account of raise in electricity charges and secondly on account of high wheat price in the market. Moreover, millers have also stated that the government''s decision to increase power tariff for flour millers from Rs 10 per unit to Rs 17 per unit, which plays main role in grinding of wheat therefore increase in the flour price was inevitable. They said that an overall impact of the power tariff increase for the mills was around Rs 20 per unit against current impact of Rs 10 per unit.
Wheat prices in the local market have jumped after Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) government opened tender for the purchase of 360,000 tons of wheat. The commodity price in the local market has increased by Rs 200 per quintal from Rs 3,550 per quintal to Rs 3,751 per quintal. Many dealers of wheat have hoarded their commodity after KP government floated the tender for the purchase of wheat as a result wheat prices in the open market have increased by Rs 200 per quintal or Rs 2 per kg.
During a visit to local market, the normal flour 20-kg bag is being sold at Rs 750 against the previous rate of Rs 600, while the fine quality of flour is available at Rs 760 against Rs 620. The wheat support price was increased to Rs 1,200 per 40/kg from Rs 1,050 by the government in 2012. After increase in wheat support prices, the price of flour bag weighting 20-kg is expected to cross Rs 800 in Punjab whereas in other provinces it is expected to reach at Rs 850 per 20 kg bag, said Rizwan Awan a flour dealer.
The millers have purchased wheat from the open market at new minimum price of Rs 1,200 per 40kg set by the federal government as wheat support price as a result of higher wheat price the flour price has registered an increase of Rs 7 per kg or 280 per 40kg.
At present, wheat price is highest in Pakistan because of high input cost, the country is losing markets abroad including United Arab Emirates (UAE), Afghanistan and many African countries, wherein Pakistani flour millers are exporting huge quantity of wheat by-products. The government from 2008 to 2013 has increased the wheat support price from Rs 600 per 40kg to Rs 1250 per 40kg, due to which the farmers across the country brought more lands under wheat cultivation.