Prices 'escalate', Nghe An people tighten spending
Since October, prices of commodities such as gasoline, electricity, and gas have all increased, and prices of many essential commodities such as food and groceries have "escalated".
On average, once every two days, Ms. Trinh Thi Hoa Hop (Hung Loc commune, Vinh city) goes to the market once to buy food for her family. As someone who often goes to the market and shops directly, price fluctuations have a huge impact on her family's spending.
“Since June, when there was information about the increase in basic salary, prices have “jumped ahead” one step. Then, there were storms and floods, some items such as green vegetables were scarce, prices increased. Up to now, gasoline prices have been adjusted down, production has stabilized after the storm, but items are still “standing still”, not to mention some items are on the rise in price,” Ms. Hop reflected.
According to a survey at traditional markets, pork prices continued to increase slightly, about 5,000 - 10,000 VND/kg (depending on the type) compared to early September. Specifically, spare ribs cost 150,000 VND/kg (an increase of 10,000 VND/kg compared to last month and 20,000 VND/kg compared to 4 months ago); pork belly costs 155,000 VND/kg (an increase of 10,000 VND/kg compared to last month), lean shoulder, loin, and rump cost 140,000 VND/kg (an increase of 10,000 VND/kg compared to last month).
In addition, poultry eggs such as chicken and duck eggs have increased by 200 - 300 VND/egg. Specifically, the price of local chicken eggs is 45,000 VND/dozen (increased by 5,000 VND/dozen), farm chicken eggs are 35,000 VND/dozen (increased by 3,000 VND/dozen), and grade 1 duck eggs are 35,000 VND/dozen (increased by 2,000 VND/dozen).
The item with the most fluctuating prices is still green vegetables. Currently, vegetable prices in the markets are high, especially after the storms from September until now. The group of green leafy vegetables has nearly doubled compared to before, the group of root vegetables has increased by 5,000 - 7,000 VND/kg.
According to rice dealers in the province, retail rice prices have increased by VND1,000 - 3,000/kg. Accordingly, the price of regular rice is from VND16,000 - 18,000/kg, Nang Hoa rice is from VND21,000 - 23,000/kg, Dai Thom rice is from VND20,000 - 23,000/kg, ST25 rice is from VND30,000 - 43,000/kg... According to traders, due to the impact of weather and epidemics, the supply has decreased, transportation costs, and labor have led to continuous increases in rice prices recently.
Due to the high prices of many fresh food items in the market, restaurants have also adjusted their prices. Accordingly, since the beginning of September, the price of a breakfast meal (noodles, pho, soup or banh muot, sticky rice) has increased by 3,000 - 5,000 VND; boxed meals and rice portions have also increased by 5,000 - 7,000 VND/meal.
According to a report from the Nghe An Statistics Office, the consumer price index (CPI) in the first 9 months of 2024 increased continuously, far exceeding the growth rate of average income. This difference puts consumers in a difficult situation, forcing them to change their shopping and spending habits.
“After nearly 20 years of working, my current salary is only about 7 million VND/month, and if you calculate the allowances, it is only about 10 million VND. My income has increased but not significantly, so I have to cut down on spending and limit shopping,” said Ms. Tran Nguyen Binh, a civil servant in Vinh city.
Spending cuts have caused a sharp drop in purchasing power in the market, making it difficult for traditional markets to do business, and many supermarkets have also seen a decrease in sales.
“People tighten their spending when commodity prices increase, causing purchasing power to decrease sharply. Previously, when meat prices were only 90,000-110,000 VND/kg, 100 kg of meat could be sold each day, but now, meat prices have increased by 20,000-30,000 VND/kg, the amount of meat sold has decreased sharply, only 50% compared to before. Selling less means less profit,” said Ms. Hoang Thi Phuong, a meat trader at Quang Trung market (Vinh city).
Most recently, from early October until now, in the latest adjustment period, the prices of electricity, gasoline and gas have increased sharply. Accordingly, on October 11, Vietnam Electricity Group adjusted the electricity price up to 2,103.11 VND/kWh (excluding VAT) from October 11. This adjustment level is equivalent to an increase of 4.8% compared to the current average retail electricity price; in the most recent price adjustment period (October 10), the prices of gasoline and oil of all kinds also increased by more than 1,000 VND/liter, the price of gas has also increased 3 times in a row, the most recent adjustment period was in early October, each 12kg gas cylinder increased by 6,000 - 10,000 VND/cylinder. The price hike has made consumers worried.
Regarding the trend in the coming months, the end of the year near Tet, consumer demand increases, some fresh food products will tend to increase in price. To ensure stability, functional sectors need to monitor and closely follow market developments, prices, grasp the supply and demand situation to promptly have management solutions.
On average, in the first 9 months of 2024, the consumer price index increased by 3.39% over the same period last year. 9/11 commodity groups increased over the same period, including: Housing, electricity, water, fuel and construction materials increased by 9.21%; Other goods and services increased by 6.93%; Medicines and medical services increased by 5.52%; Food and catering services increased by 3.62%; Beverages and tobacco increased by 1.67%; Culture, entertainment and tourism increased by 1.38%; Household equipment and utensils increased by 1.22%; Clothing, hats and footwear increased by 0.53% and Education increased by 0.41%.
There are 2 groups of goods that decreased compared to the same period: Transportation decreased by 0.41% and Post and telecommunications decreased by 0.35%.
