Onion supply from India has shown a significant decline over the past weeks, which had impacted the price of the item in the Maldivian market.
A few days back, 25kg sack of onions had a going rate of MVR 225, but the price had since surged to MVR 350; indicating an increment of MVR 5 per kilogram.
Vendors and retail traders alike echoed that the drastic price hike was due to the shortage of supply of onions in India.
To address this shortage, Indian government has already implemented substantial increase in onion export duties, raising them by 40%.
Maldives Minister of Economic Development Fayyaz Ismail said the surge in onion prices within the Maldives is not linked to the escalated export duty. The minister affirmed price dynamics will remain unaffected in the Maldives, since onions are imported under a special tariff.