An unprecedented drop in the value of Myanmar’s currency, the kyat, has pushed up the prices of major imported commodities, putting staples ranging from car fuel to cooking oil out of the reach of many ordinary citizens.

The dollar exchange rate showed particular volatility during the last week of September, when strong demand for the US currency pushed the rate to a record high of around 2,700 kyat per dollar, almost double the rate before the February 1 coup.

Since then, the prices of fuel and imported raw materials, including cooking oil, have risen by almost 50%, prompting lamentations from local businessmen who approached VOA, including exporters and merchants of rice, cooking oil importers and grocers.

Yangon taxi drivers were particularly affected. Many have stopped driving because they cannot afford fuel, and some tell VOA they will quit the business altogether if the price doesn’t drop.

“This is the worst situation I have ever experienced in 40 years of taxi driving,” said Al Doe, a 53-year-old taxi driver in North Dagon County in Yangon. Before September, Al Doe was earning 30,000 kyat a day and spending 6,000 on fuel.

“Now I spend 20,000 kyat a day on fuel, but I only earn 30,000 kyat. If I had to pay 10,000 kyat to my [car] owner, I wouldn’t get anything. But I can still survive because my landlord doesn’t ask for rent during those days, ”the father of three told VOA.

Before the coup, the price of a liter of gasoline or diesel was around 700 kyat. Now it has climbed to over 1,500 kyat. But the drivers said they couldn’t ask passengers for more money, making them unable to afford the cost of fuel and owner’s fees.

“Driving in Yangon is also dangerous due to the frequent bombings. No one wants to work at risk without having sufficient income,” said Min Wathan, a former journalist who turned to driving taxis when he lost his job after the coup.

Food distributors claim that the rising dollar exchange rate has pushed up the cost of food imports by 20 to 50 percent. In particular, the price of cooking oil – sold by a Burmese unit of measure called a viss which is equivalent to around 1.6 kilograms – nearly tripled in a matter of days.

“The price of cooking oil was around 2,000 kyat per screw to 1,150 kyat per US dollar. It has now reached around 6,000 kyat. This is the first time in the history of oil sales. cooking that we hear of such an increase, ”said Than Than Myint, a retailer and wholesaler in Pyawbwe Township in the Mandalay region.

Than Htay, a 52-year-old housewife in a township in Myanmar’s capital, told VOA that there are five family members in her household. “My husband and my oldest son are civil servants. The other three are unemployed. I don’t know how to cover our expenses with a very low monthly income of 400,000 kyat when food and goods are doubling.

“It’s not easy to borrow money from others in these difficult times,” she added.

Nwe Yee Win, a 37-year-old union activist, is a textile worker who lost her job due to the closure of her factory after the coup.

“Since becoming unemployed, I have been very careful about spending money. I was shocked when I went to the market yesterday [Oct. 3]. Everything is very expensive. It was 1,200 kyat for a potato screw in September. Now it costs 2,000 kyat for a viss, ”she said.

“I depend on my husband’s daily salary. His work has just ended. We don’t even have enough money to pay the rent on the house. We have already been severely affected by the pandemic and the coup. I have no idea how to avoid hunger in such a terrible situation, ”said Nwe Yee Win.

The devaluation of the kyat has afflicted not only the urban population, but also farmers in rural areas, who make up 70% of the country’s population. Rising fertilizer prices directly affect farmers. The price of a bag of Pearl brand fertilizer dropped from 65,000 kyat to 79,000 kyat in just one week.

“The rental price of harvesting machines will double due to the current price of gasoline. We are disappointed with the current situation, ”said Kyi Myint, a farmer who grows rice and sesame on his 8 hectares of land in Myaing Township in Magway.

Although they spend more money on materials, equipment and harvesting, farmers are not assured of a good price for their crops, Kyi Myint added.

Junta spokesman General Zaw Min Tun told a press conference on September 30 that “every effort is being made to find the best solution” to soaring prices.

“We have a responsibility to deal with the rising dollar and the price of gold in our time. We will try to manage it in the best way, although it may not be perfect,” he said. -he declares.

On October 3, the junta’s central bank issued a directive that exporters will only be allowed to keep export earnings in their foreign currency accounts for 30 days.

“The move was only a short-term solution to the country’s currency problems,” a local businessman in Yangon, who did not want to be named, told VOA.