Loose and bottled soybean oil have become costlier in Bangladesh due to price hikes in the global market amid a supply shortage of the key cooking ingredient, according to traders.

The local retail price of loose and bottled soybean oil increased by about Tk 3-6 and Tk 5 per litre respectively over the past week.

Importers say the global market price of soybean oil rose by $80 to $90 per tonne over the past month.

Loose soybean oil sold at Tk 148 to Tk 158 per litre in local markets yesterday while it was Tk 145 to Tk 152 a week ago, according to the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB).

As such, the price of loose soybean oil increased by 3.03 percent over the past week, the TCB data showed.

Abul Hashem, general secretary of the Bangladesh Edible Oil Wholesalers Association, said the price of soybean oil was Tk 5,700 per maund (around 37 kilogrammes) a week ago while it was Tk 5,750 on Monday.

"The supply of goods in the market must be increased, or the price trend will not be downward," he added.

Ali Hossain, a wholesale trader in Chattogram's Khatunganj wholesale market, told The Daily Star that supply has decreased by about 25 percent to 30 percent and the booking rate has increased a lot.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Manik, a trader at the Kazir Dewri Kitchen Market in Chattogram, said the supply of bottled soybean oil of various companies has decreased.

He also said the companies supplying bottled soybean oil have increased the price by Tk 5 per litre over the past couple of days.

Manik said loose soybean oil sold at Tk 155 per litre in retail markets last week. This week, the price has increased by Tk 5.

Besides, palm oil is being sold at Tk 142 per kilogramme while it was Tk 138 a week ago, he added.

In the April-June period of this year, the price of soybean oil in the international market was $986 per tonne while it increased to $1,079 in July, according to the World Bank Commodities Price data.

And although soybean oil prices decreased slightly in August, it is being sold at $1,031 per tonne, the data showed.

Taslim Shahriar, deputy general manager at the Meghna Group of Industries, said the price of soybean oil has increased in the international market, so the price has also increased in the local market.

Soybean oil now costs $1,030 to $1,040 per tonne in the international market while it was $950 to $970 a month ago, he added.

Taslim said the price of soybean oil increased in the international market due to supply shortages.

This is because inclement weather, namely drought, is hampering production by causing fires at soybean fields in Brazil, a major source for the key cooking ingredient.

He also said the demand for biodiesel is increasing, propelling the demand for soybeans in the process.

Due to this, a gap has been created in the demand and supply of soybeans, he added.

The annual demand for edible oil in Bangladesh is 22 lakh tonnes, with 23 lakh tonnes having been imported in fiscal 2023-24, according to data of the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission.