After 14 years, matchbox prices raised to Rs 2

Team Udayavani, Oct 24, 2021, 11:04 AM IST

Madurai: The humble matchbox, one of the integral parts of the daily life of the kitchen and the masses, will be costlier. The prices will be doubled from Rs 1 to Rs 2 per matchbox from December this year.

The federation of matchbox manufacturers has deicide to hike the price of matchboxes after 14 years. The last time the price raised to Rs 1 from 50 paise in 2007.

The federation has cited the rise in raw materials, transportation costs, and fuel prices as the reason for the hike.

news outlet TNIE quoted Tamil Nadu Match Manufacturers Association president Suresh as saying “Each and every raw material has witnessed a hike of 20-100% in recent years. The Covid pandemic has caused a cascading effect on the matchbox industry.”

A report by Times of India quoted the secretary of the National Small Matchbox Manufacturers’ Association V S Sethurathinam as saying that manufacturers have decided to increase the selling price from the units by 60% to Rs 430-480 per bundle which is excluding the 12% GST levied on them.