Rod prices cross Tk 90,000 per tonne

The price of steel in Bangladesh has jumped 3.34 per cent within a span of just one week, with manufacturers citing it as a ripple effect of rising global demand for scrap and a recent hike of local fuel prices.

According to data of the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), each tonne of MS rod was selling for Tk 91,500 yesterday. But in actuality, the prevailing rate was Tk 92,000, according to Mir Nasir Hossain, managing director of Mir Akhter Hossain Ltd.

It was Tk 88,500 one week ago, said the TCB.

"The construction companies are about to go bankrupt due to the price hike of raw materials, particularly steel, which is one major raw material for the construction sector," he said.

According to him, some construction companies had already halted their ongoing works foreseeing loss of commercial viability and they are about to turn into loan defaulters.