The price of raw hide price has hit a three-decade low, which the tanners said downtrend in the country’s leather export is behind the record-low price.
“Raw hide prices had never gone down to this lowest over the past three decades,” Bangladesh Tanners' Association (BTA) General Secretary Sakhawat Ullah told Bangla Tribune.
“Foreign buyers, mostly from China, have backtracked from Bangladesh in addition to the volatile situation in the international leather market,” he said.
On spot visits at different parts of the capital, agents were seen buying a raw hide at an average price of Tk 500 or slightly more, which was Tk 400 elsewhere in the country.
“I’ve spent Tk 550 on an average per piece of hides.” trader Rokon from the city’s Manik Nagar told Bangla Tribune.
He bought 256 pieces of hides to sell those to Saver tanneries.
“Thirty years ago in 1989, people sold a good quality hide for Tk 700. This year, price of the same quality hide is at Tk 500 only,” said trader Roich Uddin, who hails from the north-central district of Pabna.
According to Uddin, the business of raw hide outside the capital also witnessed a massive downtrend.
Speaking to Bangla Tribune, several agents said, “This year, price of a good quality bull hide fell to Tk 700 from that of last year’s Tk 1,200.
Prior to Eid-ul-Azha, the government set the price of cowhide at Tk 45-50 per square foot in Dhaka and Tk 35-40 in the rest of the county this year, lowering the price from the previous year.
The price of goat hide was set at Tk 18-20 in Dhaka and for 'Baqra' goats at Tk 13-15.
In 2017, the price for cowhide was Tk 50-55 in Dhaka and Tk 40-45 elsewhere.
The price of goat hide was Tk 20-22 per square foot and for 'Baqra goat' Tk 15-17.
Two reasons contributed to lowering prices – international markets see a significant downtrend in demand of raw hides and the Savar tannery industry, outskirt of capital Dhaka is yet to go on full swing operation causing difficulties in hides processing.
Export in various sectors witnessed uptrend this year while the tannery sector saw a 12-percent downtrend.