Consumers say that the supply of bottled soybean oil has not improved significantly, while several players in the local supply chain have expressed mixed reactions regarding the outlook of the edible oil market ahead of Ramadan, when demand for the cooking staple nearly doubles.

On February 10, Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin stated that the edible oil market would normalise within a week. But five days after that comment, an edible oil wholesaler in Dhaka's key commodity market, Karwan Bazar, said the supply had instead declined.

Another trader in Chattogram's Khatunganj market mentioned yesterday that the supply had remained almost unchanged, while a trader in the capital's Moulvibazar reported an increase.

Consumers are also encountering a similar scenario.

A resident of the capital's West Dhanmondi area told The Daily Star that he couldn't find any bottled soybean oil at the first two retail shops he visited. At the third shop, he managed to find some, but not in the five-litre bottle he wanted. They only had two-litre bottles.

Meanwhile, Laizur Rahman, a resident of Rupnagar in Dhaka's Mirpur, said he was able to buy a five-litre bottle of soybean oil after searching through four different shops yesterday.

"The government says the edible oil crisis is artificial, but the problem is still not being resolved quickly," he said in frustration, referring to the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission's statement on February 9 that the prevailing edible oil crisis was artificial.

Retailers and wholesalers in several markets in major cities, including Dhaka, Chattogram, and Barishal, said supply had been reduced after the government last month rejected refiners' requests to raise prices in the face of increased import costs.

Now, the supply shortage is forcing consumers to rummage from store to store for soybean oil, a commodity for which Bangladesh relies heavily on imports to meet its annual requirement of 24 lakh tonnes.

According to official data, the price of bottled soybean oil per litre is now Tk 175 to Tk 176, reflecting a nearly 1 percent increase over the past month and a 2.33 percent increase over the past year, according to retail price data compiled by the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh.

Nurul Alam Shikdar, a retailer in the Pallabi Extension area of Mirpur, said yesterday, "On February 10, I received only 10 percent of the bottled soybean oil I required for my shop. Today (February 15), the situation remains the same – there has been no increase in supply."

Abu Bakar Siddique, a wholesaler at Karwan Bazar, said, "A week ago, I used to get one-fourth of the edible oil I demanded from dealers. But now, I'm not even getting that. The supply has decreased even further."

Abul Hashem, an edible oil wholesaler in Moulvibazar, one of the major wholesale commodity markets in the capital, said he had received only 25 percent of his demand, which has now risen to about 50 percent.

However, he added that there were still no signs of the edible oil market returning to normal within the timeframe promised by the adviser.

A wholesale trader from Khatunganj, Chattogram, who has been in the business for 24 years, said that despite the commerce adviser's remarks, there had been no improvement in the supply situation of bottled soybean oil in the market.

He mentioned that dealers had supplied him with only 5 to 10 percent of his demand previously, and the situation remained the same.

Taslim Shahriar, senior assistant general manager at Meghna Group of Industries, a commodity importer and processor marketing the Fresh brand of edible oil, said an import-laden ship would arrive at Chattogram's port by February 25.

As such, the edible oil supply situation is expected to be resolved between March 5 and 6, he added.

The Daily Star also approached Mustafa Haider, group director of TK Group, a leading importer and commodity processor marketing the Pushti brand, for comment. However, he did not respond to calls or messages.

The reporter also tried to contact Biswajit Saha, director of corporate and regulatory affairs at City Group, which markets the Teer brand of edible oil. However, he did not respond to calls.

Atia Sultana, deputy director for operations at the Directorate of National Consumers' Right Protection (DNCRP), said the DNCRP had organised a stakeholder meeting today at its headquarters to review the latest updates on edible oil, ensure price stability, and maintain a steady supply.

SM Nazer Hossain, vice-president of the Consumers Association of Bangladesh, told The Daily Star that if the government had taken the proper initiatives, the problem would have been solved within seven days.

"They know where the issue lies. However, despite knowing the problem, they have not taken the necessary steps," he added.