After a drop in July and August, the inflation rate started to rise again since September.

Bangladesh Bank (BB) sources said the current rise in inflation rates is an effect of the government's move to increase oil prices in last June. The rise in the prices of essentials during Ramadan was another factor that affected inflation, added the sources.

According to the BB data, inflation rates, on a point-to-point basis, rose to 7.3 percent in October from 6.89 percent in the previous month.

Inflation rate for food items rose to 9 percent in October from 8.25 percent in September while for non-food items it dropped from 4.86 percent in September to 4.76 percent in October.

The BB sources also said the prices of food items such as soya bean oil and rice increased due to political unrest and global market pressures. The inflation rate for food items was affected by the failure to meet the Aus paddy production target.

If the target for Aman rice production is not achieved in this season, then the inflation rate for food items might rise even further, said the BB sources.

They also said that inflation rates might also rise because of the Tk 5,000 crore borrowing from banks by the government between July and November of the current fiscal year.

A BB high official said the biggest challenge at the moment is to keep the inflation rates under control despite the satisfactory state of macroeconomic situation.

The finance adviser has discussed with the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) officials to review the factors that led to the recent rise in inflation, a finance ministry source said.

The adviser has also taken steps to reduce government expenditure in order to reduce government borrowing from the banking system.

Besides, an inter-ministerial meeting is being arranged to discuss ways to bring down the prices of essentials, the source added.