Forex scarcity: Kano traders hike price of commodities

The living standard of many residents in Kano city is taking a turn for the worse as prices of basic commodities such as food stuff, clothing and electronic gadgets are continuously going up as a result of the scarcity of foreign currencies across the country. Our correspondent reports that most traders have reviewed the prices […]

The living standard of many residents in Kano city is taking a turn for the worse as prices of basic commodities such as food stuff, clothing and electronic gadgets are continuously going up as a result of the scarcity of foreign currencies across the country.
Our correspondent reports that most traders have reviewed the prices of their wares upwards to reflect the prevailing rates of foreign currencies such as the United States dollar, the Euro and British Pound Sterling against the Naira.
Checks by Kano Chronicle indicates that a popular brand of imported rice which used to cost N9,800 is now being sold at N13,000 while another brand of lesser quality that used to trade at N8,000 is now N12,800.
Similarly, a carton of pasta manufactured in Nigeria sold a N 2, 300 instead of its previous price of N1,800 while the imported brands sold between N3,000 to N3,500.  Other basic household items like matchsticks have also had their prices jerked up from N5 to N10 per unit of a box that contains ten.
A middle-aged man, Zayyanu Usman told our reporter yesterday that he was forced to change his plans after realizing that he could not afford to buy a carton of vegetable oil whose price has increased from N4,200 to N6,000.
“I normally budget about N15,000 to purchase basic things for my family every month. But just two days ago, when I tried to purchase the same items with the same amount, I discovered that I couldn’t get all the things I wanted even with N20,000 and because of this I was forced to reduce quantity of the items,” he said.
“You can imagine how a carton of vegetable oil that was sold at N4,200 was suddenly adjusted to sell at N6,000. Life is really becoming unbearable,” he lamented.
A staff working for a Chinese textile importer at Zoo Road area said on a certain day, when the rate of the Naira crashed to 340 to a dollar, his boss immediately increased N5,000 on each bale of textile he sold and thereafter suspended selling the material when he saw that people were still buying despite the increase.
“My Chinese master was importing textile material such as African prints bale which he used to sell at N70,000 or N100,000 depending on the quality.
When he realized the Naira had crashed, he at once added a flat rate of N5,000 per bale. When he realized that it was being bought even with the increase he suspended the sales. He has locked up his warehouse and stopped selling altogether,” he said.
A dealer in imported clothes in Sabon Gari area, Dayyabu Muhammed recently told our reporter that he had to constantly adjust the prices of his wares because if the prices remain fixed, the losses he would incur could cripple the business.
He said a new shirt for men which previously sold at N1,200 is now sold between N1,700 to N2,000 while a denim trouser rose from N2,000 to N3,000 or N3,500.
Likewise, a housewife, Amina Rabiu said she bought an imported brand of diapers which used to trade at N2,500 previously  at an higher rate of N4,200 while a tin of milk that sold at N1,200 was jerked up to N1,600.
Expressing worries on the trend some residents complained that even though only the prices of imported goods should be affected by the shortage of foreign currencies, some unscrupulous traders were increasing prices of items that are produced locally.
“It is very unfortunate that some traders who lack the fear of God in their hearts are taking advantage of a situation that does not affect them to make life miserable for poor people. Imagine a carrot seller adjusting the price of his carrots on the untenable excuse that the Naira has crashed against the dollar. For God’s sake what do carrot has to do with the dollars?,” another resident Jamila Sani, asked bitterly.
But a grocery store operator, Abubakar Na’Ibawa explained that traders sometimes have no choice but to review upwards the prices of household wares manufactured locally not because of forex but because of factors like higher transportation costs.
“People should try to understand the situation, we don’t just wake up overnight to raise prices just because the dollar has risen against the naira, we only consider transportation and other costs that we incur in the process of buying commodities from wholesalers. These are just the factors that determine prices of things and nothing more, so people should try to make reasonable judgments before crucifying us,” he concluded.