Kathmandu, May 20

Prices of food items have increased slightly compared to prices a couple of weeks ago.

Prices of red lentils (masoor), pigeon peas (rahar) and black gram beans (maas) have increased by up to Rs 15 per kg. The price of red lentils has reached Rs 155 per kg, black gram beans Rs 150 per kg and pigeon peas Rs 160 per kg, said Raj Kumar Shrestha, president of Nepal Retailers Association.

Prices of soybean oil and sunflower oil have gone up by Rs 15 and Rs 25 per litre, respectively.

“In the last couple of weeks, prices of almost all food items, except flour, have increased — though not very significantly to affect consumers,” said Shrestha, adding, “Prices are still affordable.”

As the transportation charge has increased, food prices have also gone up, he added.

He said prices might rise further with lifting of the lockdown. “Presently, we have enough stock to last around three months, but after fresh import of food items, prices may soar even higher,” he added.

He, however, said that consumption had declined by around 60 per cent in the valley due to the lockdown.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on May 21, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.

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