Price of new tamarind turns down from K6,000 per viss in Yangon market

The price of tamarind has skyrocketed on 13 February 2024 pricing at K6,000 per viss in Yangon market while it was ranging at K1,900 to K2,500 per viss in 2023.
However, the prices were turning downward trend after a week. It becomes K4,500-K5,000 per viss while chopped pieces of tamarind is priced at K3,700 per viss, a trader from tamarind wholesale market on Khayay Street at Bayintnaung brokerage told the Global New Light of Myanmar. The chopped pieces of tamarind arrived in Yangon market later than the previous years and thus opened the market with K3,000-K3,100 per viss in the Yangon market.
Chopped pieces of tamarind started arriving in the market on 22 January. On the day, the old tamarind was priced at K1,200/K1,300 per viss and the tamarind flesh was priced at K1,900/K2,900 per viss. However, the new chopped pieces of tamarind was priced at K2,700/K2,800 per viss on 5 February.
On 24 February, old tamarind was priced at K3,000 per viss; regular pod K2,700 and Pwintkat K1,500 respectively. The pod tamarind old has less moistures than the new and is K2,000 lower than the new per viss. Therefore, new tamarind is less popular and the price is turning down.
The tamarind prices have been stable at these low prices for two years, which in turn has led to the tamarind traders losing money without profit. This year, traders from tamarind growing areas forecasted that tamarind productivity will be declined. In addition, chopped pieces of tamarind and new tamarind arrived in Yangon market at high prices than other years.
The statistics show that chopped pieces of new tamarind was priced at K1,700/K1,800 and tamarind flesh was K2,500/K3,000 per viss on 23 February 2023. Starting in mid-2023, tamarind was K1,200/K1,300 per viss and tamarind flesh was K1,900-K2,500 per viss respectively and remained steady at the low prices.
Veined tamarind was only K800 in 2023 especially in the tamarind growing regions. Now tamarind prices in Lanmadaw retail market are K7,000 per viss for new tamarind while it is K4,000 per viss for old.
Tamarind leftover stocks were many in 2023 since both the export and domestic demands in that year were declined. However, this year the export returns high; thus, the leftover stock has been declining; and again, the tamarind productivity this year is getting low. Therefore, tamarind prices are expected to be high in the Yangon market this year.
Notwithstanding, a tamarind seller from Bayintnaung market told the GNLM that only few amount of tamarinds have been exported within these months. — TWA/ TMT