Onion prices may go up further as supply declines

New Delhi: The budget of Indian household will be dented further owing to a steep rise in onion prices in the last couple of days. Onion prices have shot up by more than 30 percent in Lasalgaon in Maharashtra, Asia’s biggest onion market, because of supply shortage.

Prices in both wholesale and retail markets have also started increasing due to sluggish supply of good quality onions in the wake of the crop being damaged in storage in major growing states.

Retail prices of onion have already risen by up to 40 percent in metro cities in the last one year. The maximum increase in price is seen in Delhi, where onion is costing between Rs 35 and Rs 40 per kg at present, as against Rs 24 per kg in the year-ago period.

The government had last month increased the minimum export price of onion to $425 a tonne from $250 a tonne to restrict exports and increase domestic availability.

PTI