Most of the essential commodities like beef, chicken, fish, sugar, salad items, brinjal, pulses, bason and date rise in prices just before the start of the fasting month of Ramadan.
Market sources say edible oil is still retailing at much higher than the government-set rates.
Onion and potato, however, have remained static for the past seven days, according to traders.
Beef prices further witnessed a hike as sold at Tk 660-720 a kg at different markets-a Tk 10-20 hike a kg in a week and Tk 100-120 in a month.
Sufferings of poor and lower middle-income people, who depend largely on broiler and Pakistani chicken, cultured fish and egg for protein, have excalated.
Broiler price increased to Tk 165-180 a kg, Pakistani to Tk 330-360, indigenous to Tk 550-580 and cultured rohit fish to Tk 280-430 a kg.
Protein-rich egg remained static in price at its previous high of Tk 105-112 a dozen.
Brinjal is priced at Tk 60-85 a kg, cucumber at Tk 70-90, tomato at Tk 50-60 a kg, up by Tk 15-20.
Consumers, however, are yet to reap the benefits of VAT exemption on imported edible oil as both bottled and loose soybean oil, loose super palm oil are found selling at much higher rates.
After VAT cuts by the government, bottled soybean oil price was fixed at Tk 160 per litre and loose one at Tk 141 on March 20.
It also fixed loose palm oil's maximum retail price at Tk 131 per litre.
But city grocers and vendors hawking through lanes are yet to get new bottled and loose oil, says Rashed Mridha, a Nawabganjbazar trader.
He says, "We stopped selling loose oil while old bottles were being retailed at Tk 165-168 a litre."
According to dealers/distributors, new bottles will be delivered during its high demand in Ramadan as people are busy preparing for the fasting month, he adds.
Mr Mridha said only a few groceries, located near big marketplaces like Karwanbazar and Moulvibazar, might have got one-litre new bottles.
Meanwhile, sugar prices further showed a hike by Tk 2.0-5.0 a kg, coarse and finer lentil by Tk 5.0-10, chickpea by Tk 5.0-10 and kesari by Tk 10-20.
Consumers Association of Bangladesh vice-president SM Nazer Hossain says unscrupulous traders have raised prices of essential commodities long before Ramadan amid lack of necessary monitoring.
He suggests that stringent law and exemplary punishment be ensured for wrongdoers to keep prices of commodities within the reach of commoners this fasting month.
Mr Hossain demands reintroduction of rationing for the poor on a regular basis to tackle "veiled" hunger among millions of families.
