Following a period of heightened market volatility, the egg market is showing signs of relief. While retail prices of eggs remained between Tk180 and Tk190 per dozen for several days, they have now fallen to Tk150 per dozen.
Wholesalers believe that once vegetable imports increase, the market will be fully stabilised. In addition, government-mandated pricing has resulted in companies no longer setting egg prices via mobile SMS notifications.
This information was gathered on Friday (18 October), after speaking with wholesale egg traders at the Tejgaon market in the capital.
Traders claim that relief in egg prices has been restored as corporate companies now adhere to the government’s fixed rates.
Tejgaon is one of the largest wholesale egg markets in Dhaka.
Eggs are transported here from farms across the country in trucks, and from Tejgaon, they are distributed to various retail markets and neighbourhoods throughout the city.
Consequently, any disruption in sales at Tejgaon significantly impacts retail markets.
Mehdi Hasan, a wholesale trader at the Islambagh Poultry in Tejgaon, expressed his relief over the recent government intervention.
He explained that corporate companies like Paragon and Kazi Farms used to determine egg prices via mobile SMS, causing the prices to fluctuate according to their whims.
"Since the government started regulating prices two days ago, stability has returned to the egg market. No longer are prices being set through mobile SMS," Mehdi Hasan told Bangladesh First.
In August, devastating floods in the southwestern and northern regions of the country severely impacted the vegetable and fish markets.
With fish ponds flooded in these areas, the fish market has also faced turmoil.
As a result, the surging demand for eggs due to the soaring prices of vegetables and fish led to an alarming rise in egg prices. T
raders are hopeful that, with the increased supply of vegetables next month, egg prices will fall to more affordable levels.
Mehdi Hasan predicts further declines in egg prices from next month as winter vegetables start arriving in the markets.
"Due to the high price of vegetables, demand for eggs surged. Earlier, I used to sell around 50,000 eggs daily, but now I am selling 70,000 to 80,000 eggs per day," he said.
Meanwhile, Alauddin Hossain, manager of Allah'r Dan Poultry in Tejgaon, stated that the market has begun to experience some relief due to corporate companies adhering to government-fixed prices.
"Today, eggs are being sold at Tk11 each, or Tk133 per dozen. If corporate companies continue selling at these rates, the market will stabilise."
Despite the wholesale price of Tk133 per dozen at Tejgaon, eggs are being sold at Tk150 per dozen in various neighbourhood stores across the capital.
At Jabbar Store in Meradia Market, Banasree, red eggs were observed selling at Tk150 per dozen.
When asked why his prices were higher than the wholesale rate in Tejgaon, store owner Rafiqul Jabbar explained that his shop does not receive eggs directly from the Tejgaon wholesale market.
"Eggs go through three to four intermediaries before reaching us, which forces us to sell at higher prices," he said.
According to the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), egg prices were between Tk150 and Tk162 per dozen as of 8 August.
Egg prices have been on the rise since mid-2022, gradually exceeding Tk150, and at times reaching Tk170 to Tk180 per dozen. Prior to 2022, the price of eggs fluctuated between Tk80 and Tk120 per dozen throughout the year.
Daily demand for eggs in Bangladesh is approximately 4.5 crore, while production previously stood at around 4.5 to 5 crore eggs per day.
To rein in the runaway egg prices and stabilise the volatile market, the interim government granted permission to seven companies on 8 October to import 4.5 crore eggs.
Business leaders say that the situation has since started to normalise.
