Purchasing power increases, food prices remain stable during the holiday season

Purchasing power of food items at traditional markets during the holidays increased sharply. Photo: Thanh Phuc

Survey at thetraditional marketIn Vinh city, Cua Lo town, Nam Dan district, etc., the buying and selling atmosphere was bustling from the afternoon of August 31 until September 4. Small traders said that the amount of food consumed during this holiday is expected to increase dramatically, so they have proactively provided abundant supplies and made efforts to keep prices stable to increase revenue.

Ms. Trinh Thi Hoa, a veal trader at Sa Nam market (Nam Dan town) said: “During the 4-day holiday alone, I prepared 15 veal calves, both for retail sale at the market and for distribution to shops in the district and Vinh city. The amount of meat consumed doubled, and on the main holiday, September 2, it tripled compared to normal days.”

A roast duck business at Hung Dung market (Vinh city) said that the amount of duck consumed during the 4 holidays increased 3-4 times compared to normal days. Photo: Thanh Phuc

At thePeople's marketIn Vinh city, the amount of food consumed during the holidays also increased sharply. “Normally, we only sell about 10-15 kg of crab, 10 kg of mantis shrimp and 20 kg of various snails, but during the holidays, the amount of goods sold doubled. Customers who buy to bring home, buy for picnics, organize meals at home should buy in large quantities, from a few kilos or more.”

Especially, at thesupermarketIn the area such as Lotte Mart Vinh, Big C, Mega and Vinmart system, the number of customers also increased by 30-40% compared to normal days. The best-selling items are: Processed foods, soft drinks, clothing, cosmetics...

The number of customers at supermarkets increased sharply during the holidays. Photo: Thanh Phuc

Mr. Tran An Khang, representative of Big C Vinh supermarket, said: “On this holiday, the supermarket launched many promotional programs, with strong discounts of 30-50% on thousands of products such as: fresh food, processed food, soft drinks, spices, kitchen appliances, etc. Thanks to that, the number of customers coming to shop at the supermarket during the recent holiday increased sharply, and revenue also increased by one and a half times, double that of normal days. People took advantage of the holiday to both go out and shop for essential consumer goods. Therefore, promotional programs attracted the attention of customers.”

It is worth noting that although purchasing power has increased sharply, prices of goods are quite stable compared to normal days. Specifically: Pork costs from 120,000 to 135,000 VND/kg; beef from 220,000 to 250,000 VND/kg, industrial chicken 40,000 VND/kg, and domestic chicken 120,000 VND/kg.

Green vegetables are abundant, prices are stable, slightly down compared to the previous month. Photo: Thanh Phuc

Green vegetables continue to maintain stable prices: Cabbage 15,000 VND/kg; Chinese cabbage 27,000 VND/kg; squash 20,000 VND/kg; green mustard 30,000 VND/kg; green onions, coriander priced at 80,000 - 90,000 VND/kg; water spinach priced at 8,000 VND/bunch; tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers fluctuate between 18,000 - 23,000 VND/kg; sweet potatoes priced at around 20,000 - 26,000 VND/kg...

Particularly for water types,seafood is in high demand this timePrices have increased compared to normal days: Tilapia is priced at 65,000 VND/kg (up 5,000 VND/kg), freshwater shrimp is 150,000 VND/kg (up 15,000 VND), snakehead fish ranges from 80,000-100,000 VND/kg (up 5,000 VND/kg). In particular, fresh seafood prices have increased sharply: Squid is 250,000-270,000 VND/kg (up 20,000-30,000 VND/kg); blue crab is 300,000-380,000 VND/kg (up 40,000 VND/kg); mantis shrimp is 180,000-220,000 VND/kg (up 30,000 VND/kg)...

Fresh seafood prices have increased sharply. Photo: Thanh Phuc

The reason why purchasing power increased but prices remained stable was due to two reasons. Firstly, after a period of waiting with a “lag” due to the impact of gasoline prices, prices of goods at traditional markets and supermarkets have gradually stabilized, with some items decreasing by 10-25% when gasoline prices dropped sharply. Secondly, because traders had predicted market trends, they prepared abundant supplies to meet consumer demand and keep prices stable during the holidays.

Thanh Phuc