Dhaka, April 19 -- Food production, trade and transportation costs may increase further on fuel-price hike by Tk 15-20 per litre in Bangladesh amid an exigent global crunch.

Bangladesh uses about 4.35 million tonnes of diesel annually, and around 24 per cent of it is used in agriculture. About 80 per cent of irrigation depends on this fuel oil. It is also needed for land preparation, harvesting, threshing, and transporting crops.

On Saturday, the government increased diesel price from Tk 100 to Tk 115 per litre, octane Tk 140, up from Tk 120, petrol Tk 135, up from Tk 116, and kerosene Tk 130 in a rise from Tk 112.

Economists, agriculturists and businesspeople are concerned about domino effect of the fuel-price rises across a spectrum ...