September 8

WITH the demand from foreign trade partners declining, the price of tamarind is on the decline, U Aung Tun, a seller at the Bayintnaung Commodity Wholesale Centre told the Global New Light of Myanmar.

The prices of export items (rice, onion, pulses, peanut, sesame and sugar) are rising, whereas the prices of gum karaya, tamarind and Hygrophila Phlomoides are still low, said a tamarind and herb seller from Bayintnaung Commodity Wholesale Centre.

The prices of tamarind moved in the range between K1,150-2,000 per viss depending on varieties and quality on 6 September.

A type of tamarind designated for exports fetches K750 per viss, Ko Win Oo, a trader told the GNLM.

The price of gum karaya hit K4,500 per viss on the back of strong demand by China, Thailand, Malaysia and India in 2021. The prices then drastically dropped to K7,000-9,000 per viss due to lack of foreign demand, the herb sellers said.

Similarly, the foreign demand pushed up the price of Hygrophila phlomoides Nees to K20,000 per viss in 2021. This year, the price plunged to K5,000 per viss.

Despite some foreign companies offering to buy tamarind in mid-2023, it does not reach an agreement. The new tamarind will flow into the market at the end of the year. — TWA/EM