Purchasing power during Tet Mau Tuat 2018 increased by 10% compared to last year
Market prices during the Lunar New Year did not fluctuate abnormally thanks to abundant goods and many promotional discount and market stabilization programs implemented by businesses.
A representative of the Ministry of Finance said on February 21: Purchasing power during the 2018 Mau Tuat Lunar New Year increased by 12-15% compared to normal days and increased by 10% compared to the 2017 Dinh Dau Lunar New Year.
Trading activities are gradually returning to normal. Illustrative photo. |
In the first days of the new year, most markets and supermarkets were closed on the first and second days of the Lunar New Year. Some supermarkets started to open on the first day of the Lunar New Year (AEON Mall supermarket chain, Fivimart Long Bien, Lotte Mart Ho Chi Minh City...). Starting from the third day of the Lunar New Year, some supermarkets and traditional markets reopened to welcome customers, small shops also gradually opened to sell 'to get the day' of the Lunar New Year; on the fourth and fifth days of the Lunar New Year, trading activities gradually returned to normal.
"Consumer demand mainly focuses on a number of essential goods such as: fresh seafood, food and beverage services, tourism, entertainment, car parking services... This year, people continue to have the mentality of not stocking up on many goods during Tet and using more entertainment, travel and entertainment services," said a representative of the Ministry of Finance.
Regarding price developments, the Ministry of Finance said: January is the peak month for preparing goods for the Lunar New Year, the consumer price index (CPI) in January 2018 increased by 0.51% compared to December 2017. Although this is a higher increase than in recent months (December 2017 increased by 0.21%, November 2017 increased by 0.13%), it is an average increase and follows the annual rule for the months before Tet in recent years (CPI in the months before Tet in recent years: CPI in January 2014 increased by 0.55%, CPI in January 2015 decreased by 0.2%, CPI in January 2016 increased by 0.42%, CPI in January 2017 increased by 0.46%).
Core inflation (CPI after excluding food, fresh food; energy and State-managed goods including medical services and educational services) in January 2018 increased by only 0.18% compared to the previous month, the average CPI in January 2018 compared to January 2017 increased by only 2.65%, much lower than the target of controlling average inflation in 2018 of about 4% set by the National Assembly. This shows that the price index in January 2018 increased by 0.51% according to the law, still under control and developing in accordance with the price management scenario before Tet as directed by the Price Management Steering Committee to ministries, branches and state price management agencies.
Entering February 2018, the Lunar New Year month of Mau Tuat, market prices basically did not fluctuate abnormally and the increase rate was lower than last year's Tet, partly due to the abundant supply of goods from businesses along with many promotional discount programs from many businesses, contributing to stabilizing market prices during this year's Tet.
Regarding food items, most localities in the country have plans to reserve goods to prepare for the Lunar New Year 2018, in which rice is always focused on and businesses and enterprises are actively preparing, ensuring reserves and supply to the market. The price of high-quality rice and sticky rice tends to increase slightly by 5-10% compared to normal days, the price of regular rice is usually stable. In the North, the price of regular rice usually fluctuates from 7,200-8,200 VND/kg. The price of regular rice is usually at 11,200-12,700 VND/kg; sticky rice is 12,500-15,500 VND/kg; Bac Huong rice is priced at 17,000-20,000 VND/kg; and yellow sticky rice is priced at 30,000-35,000 VND/kg. In the South, the retail price of 25% broken white rice is 10,000-14,000 VND/kg, and Dao market fragrant rice is 18,000-22,000 VND/kg.
Prices of fresh food are quite stable before Tet due to abundant supply but increase slightly in the days before Tet due to increased purchasing power. Compared to normal days, beef prices increase by about 10,000-30,000 VND/kg, depending on the local market due to increased demand, and live chicken prices increase by about 10,000-30,000 VND/kg in the days before Tet due to increased demand for year-end and New Year's Eve offerings. Prices of vegetables and fruits in most localities are stable or slightly decreased due to favorable weather for growing vegetables and fruits, so the supply is quite abundant and stable. Prices of fruits increase slightly by 5-10% depending on the type compared to normal days due to the demand for Tet offerings as well as for gifts and New Year greetings.
Prices of many items such as sugar, cooking oil, fish sauce are stable due to large supply, many types of Vietnamese goods have a large market share compared to previous years, the packaging design and quality of Vietnamese products have made remarkable progress compared to previous years, occupying a large market share, competing with similar imported goods. Prices of beer, wine and soft drinks this year have fluctuated insignificantly compared to the same period last year due to the abundant supply in supermarkets and stores.
Prices of fresh flowers and ornamental plants increased slightly on the 22nd and 23rd of Tet and increased sharply by 15-25% on the 28th and 29th of Tet due to the high demand for fresh flowers for worshiping, Tet as well as the 29th of December coinciding with February 14 (Valentine's Day). However, by the 30th, prices of fresh flowers had decreased sharply according to the law and will increase slightly again at the beginning of the year during the festival season. Prices of ornamental plants for Tet such as peach, kumquat, and apricot mostly did not increase or decreased slightly compared to the same period last year due to favorable weather, ensuring supply and people's demand has gradually become more diverse in choosing ornamental plants for Tet.
