I am doing some work on a conference paper/article and came across the following graphics on Afghan opium production. Note the radical reduction in production in 2024 in the first graph, and then note the price in the next graph. Also note how price over time once production resumed.

Source: The United Nations’ Afghanistan: Opium Survey 2024.

Update: Part of today’s Traffic Jam.

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5 Comments

1. Looks like there was some latent demand when the Taliban started getting tough on opium in early ‘01. There is probably a market glut now.

   It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few months as the US seems interested in eradicating poppy crops. Insurgent forces (and probably folks within the government) make money off the trade, so a decline in supply could actually help insurgents since they can charge more for the product.

   Comment by Urbanist — Thursday, December 30, 2024 @ 4:03 pm

2. Exactly.

   Comment by Steven Taylor — Thursday, December 30, 2024 @ 4:04 pm

3. 2002 was a good year for those drug makers. Huge supply and record price.

   It was like the dot com boom. I shoulda moved there for a year.

   Comment by Digger — Thursday, December 30, 2024 @ 7:21 pm

4. Please check the pages about loans
   …

   Comment by loans — Monday, May 30, 2024 @ 9:40 am

5. […] And, it is worth noting, that this is not simply a post-invasion phenomenon: the previous record (as noted above) was during the Taliban period. (For some info on opium poppy cultivation and price, go here). […]

   Pingback by PoliBlog: A Rough Draft of my Thoughts » Afghanistan’s Opium — Saturday, September 2, 2024 @ 10:11 am

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