DUSHANBE, August 8, 2012, Asia-Plus — The Dushanbe mayor’s office has imposed restrictions on flour sales in the city and the restrictions will be in effect until the end of the holy month of Ramadan, Shavkat Saidov, a spokesman for the Dushanbe mayor’s office, said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
“Until August 19, wheat flour will be sold in the city at the rate of not more than 10 kilograms per person,” Saidov noted. According to him, the decision to restrict flour sales has been made to prevent flour speculation.
We will recall that the Dushanbe authorities took measures to curb food price hikes during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The Dushanbe mayor’s office called on market traders to lower the prices they charged for flour, beef, and lamb.
Bazaar merchants were reportedly recommended to sell beef at 29.00 somoni per one kilogram, lamb at 30.00 somoni per one kilogram, vegetable oil at up to 8.00 somoni per liter, local rice at up to 7.00 somoni per kilogram, sugar at up to 5.00 somoni per kilogram, milk at up to 3.00 somoni per liter, potatoes at up to 2.00 per kilogram, carrots at up to 2.20 somoni per kilogram, onions at up to 1.10 somoni per kilogram and eggs at up to 60 dirams per piece.
Meanwhile, the Tajik authorities have begun to sell flour from the national reserve in order to avoid flurry in domestic market. Muhammadi Mulloyev, the deputy director of Tajikistan’s Public Procurement Agency (PPA) under the Government of Tajikistan, says PPA has concluded contracts with Kazakhstan’s suppliers in order to replenish its reserves and shipping of 100,000 tons of flour and 40,000 tons of wheat has already started in Kazakhstan.
According to him, grain productions in Russia and Kazakhstan are expected to fall sharply this year because of dry weather and wheat prices will continue rising in the future as well. “The wheat prices may rise 20 percent in Tajikistan in autumn,” Mulloyev noted.
The current price for 50-kilgoram sack of imported grade I flour at Dushanbe”s bazaars fluctuates from 130.00 to 140.00 somoni and the current price for local grade I flour is 110.00-115.00 somoni.
Tajikistan’s annual requirements in wheat flour are estimated at 1.6 million tons and Kazakhstan provides the bulk of Tajikistan’s grain and flour imports.
