The government has taken initiative to keep the prices of essential commodities stable ahead of Ramadan by allowing sufficient stock of the items usually on high demand.
Import of essential commodities is expected to increase ahead of the month of Ramadan as Bangladesh Bank (BB) has asked the commercial banks to maintain lowest level margin on opening letter of credit (LC) for importing commodities.
The central bank issued a circular in this regard aiming to help keep the prices of essentials stable during the upcoming holy month of Ramadan, said a BB official.
Prices of essential commodities include edible oil, chickpeas, peas, pulse, spices, dates, fruits and sugar, generally go up with the rise in demand ahead of and during Ramadan every year.
The instruction takes immediate effect and will remain effective until May 15 next, said the central bank.
"We've taken the steps to boost the import of essential items ahead of Ramadan," said BB's chief spokesperson Serajul Islam.
According to BB, the commercial banks usually charge 5.0-10 per cent and even higher LC margin based on bank-client relationship.
The banks do not even charge the margin if the importer is a good client, sources said.
Bankers think that imports of essential items will now be easier as the importers even who do not have enough money would be able to import commodities taking the advantages of lowest LC margin.
Private Banks sources informed that banks sometimes decide on zero margin for large and good importers.
The minimum margin is generally fixed at 2-5 percent, meaning that importers can open LCs by paying Tk 2-5 of the import value amounting to Tk100 to the banks and pay the remaining amount in phases, they added.
However, some importers said that they all have already imported the essential items to be required for the month of Ramadan.
When contacted, general secretary of Bangladesh Edible Oil Wholesales Association Golan Mawla said that it would have been more effective had such measures came earlier because commonly import of commodities starts one month before Ramadan.
“Such circular should have been issued at least two or three months earlier for ensuring effective and adequate supply of the essential goods in the local market,” he said.
He, however, welcomed the central bank's directive, saying that if any initiative is taken timely, it benefits both traders and consumers.
But another group of importers said the central bank's steps would help boost the import of essential goods because businesses people import goods throughout the year. If the LC margin is kept at its lowest level, they would import the essential commodities for making profits, said an importer of city's Chalkbazar.