Published: 10:28 AM, 16 August 2026
TCB to sell essentials below market prices in new open-sale pilot
The state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) is set to launch a pilot initiative to sell selected essential commodities in the open market at prices below prevailing rates, offering relief to consumers beyond its existing Smart Family Card programme.
The initiative will initially focus on edible oil, with a shipment of around 20,000 tonnes expected to arrive in the first week of September, TCB Chairman Brigadier General Mohammad Foyshol Azad said. “This is completely a new initiative and it’s a thought of the present government,” he said. Under the initiative, TCB will procure commodities from international markets at comparatively lower prices and sell them directly to consumers at a modest margin. The government will not provide any subsidy for the programme.
“Since I have bought it at a lower price, I will sell it at a slightly lower price. But it will be lower than the market rate,” the chairman said.
Depending on procurement costs and market conditions, the retail price could be Tk10–12 lower per unit than the prevailing market price. Unlike TCB’s subsidised sales through Smart Family Cards, the new programme will be open to all consumers.
“Everybody will be able to buy the items through open sale,” Foyshol said. The first shipment of edible oil will serve as a pilot lot, with the programme initially running for three to four months to assess consumer demand, market response and TCB’s ability to sell the products effectively.
“If I bring the product but can’t sell it, then this can’t be continued. If I can sell it, then we can move forward with the initiative,” he said.
TCB may later include other essential commodities such as lentils and sugar if it can procure them at competitive prices.
“If we can procure lentils at a lower price, we will also sell lentils. If we can procure sugar at a lower price, we will sell sugar as well,” he said. The chairman said the initiative would operate under TCB’s existing mandate and would not require any additional budgetary allocation at this stage.
“We have already kept provision in this budget. At present, we don’t need any additional budgetary allocation,” he said. The open-market sales will complement rather than replace TCB’s subsidised sales programme through the Smart Family Card system. “The subsidised operation is different.
But this will be at the market rate, but below the prevailing market price,” Foyshol said.
TCB does not plan to intervene in every commodity market continuously. Instead, it will introduce specific products when supply shortages or unusually high prices create pressure on consumers. Edible oil has been selected for the pilot because of its high current price and strong consumer demand.
“Demand for edible oil is there. We are starting with oil because the price of oil is high now. If I can’t procure it at a lower price, I can’t sell it at a lower price,” the chairman said.The initiative is not intended to be seasonal. TCB will evaluate the pilot after three to four months and consider expanding it to additional commodities if the model proves successful.
“If the pilot is successful, it will go for extension,” Foyshol said.
He expressed hope that greater availability of competitively priced commodities through TCB’s open-market operations would also put downward pressure on overall market prices. “If we can put the products into the market, prices will naturally start coming down,” he said.
