India imposes 40% export duty on onions

India will impose with immediate effect a 40% export duty on onions up to Dec 31 in an attempt to improve domestic availability of the vegetable, the ministry of finance said in a notification on Saturday.

India’s annual retail inflation rose sharply to a 15-month high of 7.44% in July from 4.87% the previous month.

Food inflation, which accounts for nearly half of the overall consumer price basket, hit 11.51%. Retail food inflation was at its highest since January 2020.

Prices of some of the most used vegetables in Indian kitchens, including tomatoes, onions, peas, brinjal, garlic and ginger, have more than doubled in the last few months.

India is heading for its driest August in more than a century, with scant rainfall likely to persist across large areas, partly because of the El Nino weather pattern, two weather department officials told Reuters on Friday.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 20^th, 2023.

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