Commerce ministry sits tomorrow (Sunday) to devise strategies in a bid to tame the prices of key essential items like edible oil and sugar in the domestic market.
The meeting is part of a move to make the commodity market steady as prices of some commodities have already spiralled out of people's purchasing power.
Representatives of top importers, retailers, wholesalers and government officials as well as executives of different trade bodies are expected to attend it.
The meeting will review prices, supply and stocks of oil and sugar in line with the local and international markets.
In another development, commerce ministry will take necessary steps to support the import sector in order to ensure a sufficient supply of essential items.
A senior official said the ministry might take a premeditated plan to check any possible unusual hike in the prices of edible oil and sugar near future.
On Thursday, the government reduced regulatory duty on sugar import to tame their galloping prices.
The cutback will be valid until February 28 next year.
The prices of essentials, especially onion, sugar, chicken, lentil and edible oil, remained high in the city's kitchen markets in recent times.
The key cooking ingredient onion is being sold at Tk 70 and Tk 75 per kilogram in the local market. It was Tk 40-45 a couple of weeks back.
On the other hand, the price of sugar is high enough to create a bitter taste among the consumers.
The sweetener was sold at Tk 88-90 a kg in the retail market in recent days. Weeks ago, it was traded between Tk 65 and Tk 70 a kg.
