Less than three weeks after the Eid Kabir festival, the prices of essential commodities, especially foodstuffs, have soared in the Abuja metropolis.

The survey was conducted on Wednesday at Wuse, Garki, Utako and Nyanya markets in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as well as in Mararaba in Nasarawa State.

It showed that the prices of consumable items like yam, rice, palm oil, potato, beans and provisions have gone up by between five to eight per cent since the end of the festival.

For instance, at the Garki market, a 50kg bag of Royal Stallion brand of rice now sells for N9,000, as against the former price of N7,400.

The price of the Tomato brand of rice has also increased to N8,300 from N7,200.

The price increase also affected Mama Africa brand of rice, as its price has shot up from N7,200 to N8,100.

At Wuse market, a 50 kg bag of Gold Cap rice now sells for N9,500, as against the previous price of N9,200.

In all the markets visited, the price of yam has similarly increased, with a set of five big yams selling for N10,000, as against N6,000 some weeks ago, while a set of smaller yams now sells for N1,800, as against N1,600.

However, yam appears to be cheaper at Orange market in Mararaba, where a set of six large yams sells for N7,800, while the medium-sized variants go for N4,500.

Similarly, the price of “Garri’’, a popular staple food in the country, has also increased, with a 50kg bag being sold at N8,200, instead of N5,800.

At Utako market, the price of a 50kg bag of “Garri’’ has spiralled up to N10,000 from N7,500, its price a month ago.

A “Mudu’’(measuring bowl) of yellow “Garri’’ sells for N180, as against its former price of N150, while the price of the white variant has risen from N100 to N150.

However, the price of a 20-litre jerry can of palm oil varies at Wuse and Garki markets. At Garki market, it goes for N8,500, while at Wuse Market, it sells for N7,200, as against the previous uniform price of N6,150 a couple of months ago.