The prices of essential commodities have yet to decrease to the expected levels despite significant tax exemptions at the import stage, said Abdur Rahman Khan, chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR).

"Although the prices of eggs and sugar have reduced to some extent, we haven't seen any changes in others, including soybean oil. We are not receiving the expected benefits of the tax exemptions across all products," Khan said.

He made the comments while responding to queries from journalists about rising commodity prices at the NBR headquarters in Dhaka's Agargaon.

The tariffs for soybean oil have been reduced significantly, but its prices are yet to drop, as the traders are still blaming the global price shock, he added.

He also sought cooperation from all stakeholders, including commerce ministry, consumers rights body, journalists and consumers, to keep essential commodity prices stable.

Irregularities in the market will increase if the existing wrongdoings are tolerated, he said. Someone has to protest against these irregularities, he added.

The NBR has also mentioned how much a product's price will decrease per kilogramme after the tax exemption, so that the consumers can protest if there is any mismatch, he said.

Khan also informed that the NBR is set to observe the National VAT Day tomorrow and the "VAT Week" will be observed from December 10 to 15.