Basic Necessity Prices Soar This Week

Bogor, W Java, Nove 7 (Antara) - The prices of basic necessities, such as chili, eggs and rice in Bogor, West Java, have soared since this week, traders said. The price of red chili which was earlier still Rp16,000-Rp20,000 soared to Rp43,000 per kg. Earlier, cayenne pepper was sold at Rp18,000 but now it rose to Rp40,000 per kg. "Chili prices have been increasing this week. We have no idea why prices are rising. Some say it is because of scarce stocks due to harvest failure," chili trader Riko said at the Merdeka Market here on Friday. Garlic price also rose by Rp8,000 per kg from Rp16,000 to Rp24,000. Riko said garlic was usually sold at Rp4,000 per 2.5 ounces, now it is sold at Rp6,000 per 2.5 ounces. The price of broiler chicken eggs has also risen from Rp18,000 per kg to Rp20,000 per kg. The increase has taken place since the past week. Warteg (road-side food stalls) have also felt the effect of rice price increase. IR 64 rice which was sold earlier at Rp6,500 per kg rose to Rp9,000 per kg. Titin, a warteg trader in Jalan Menteng complained of prices increase, causing her to spend more for running her warteg business. She said she used to spend Rp25,000 to buy chili, unions and tomato to produce `sambal` (a kind of condiment). Now she has to spend Rp45,000. "This is too costly. We cannot earn a profit with that prices. So, we also raise the price of a pack of rice from Rp8,000 to Rp9,000," Titin said. She expressed concern over the possibility of prices to continue to soar following the government`s plan to increase subsidized fuel prices. "While prices of fuel oils have not to be raised, commodity prices have been on the rise. Subsidized gas has risen from Rp15,000 to Rp17,000 per 3-kg cylinder in the market," Titin pointed out. Bakso (meat ball) traders also complained of price hikes. Bakso hawker Marno (45) has now to spend Rp100,000 for a kilo of meat. "Luckily, traders sold meat a Rp100,000 per kg to bakso sellers. They usually sell it at Rp105,000 per kg to common consumers," he said. However, Marno is more concerned with the price of chili, whose price increase reached over 100 percent. "I have to reduce the chili content of my bakso." Domestic Trade Head of Bogor`s Industry and Trade Office, Maman Sudarman acknowledged that the increase in the prices of a number of essential commodities. "We have monitored the upward-trend of prices since the past week. This week prices increase further such that for rice which has risen to Rp9,000 per kg," he said. He said price increases had been generated by certain factors such as weather conditions and drought causing failures in rice and chili production. "This year, we experience drought cutting down rice production. Production of chili also dropped due to harvest failure," he said.