As Tet nears, HCMC experiences a shopping surge in supermarkets and wholesale markets, with retailers ensuring stable prices and sufficient supply despite logistical challenges.

Vice Chairman Nguyen Van Dung of the HCMC People's Committee led a delegation to survey and work at Thu Duc and Hoc Mon wholesale markets on the supply of goods for Tet 2025 across HCMC on the night of Jan 22 and early morning of Jan 23.

Following wage adjustments starting from July 1, prices for many goods have been reset accordingly.

As the Lunar New Year approaches, three key wholesale markets in Ho Chi Minh City buzz with activities throughout the night.

On these days near Tet, the amounts of goods transported to three wholesale markets in Ho Chi Minh City from other provinces and cities nationwide have increased sharply.

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade has worked with distribution systems, wholesale markets and enterprises joining the market stabilization program to increase essential goods meeting year-of-end shopping demand.

Currently, besides preparing a sufficient supply, many supermarkets and markets are also committed to reducing and stabilizing the prices of essential items.

More than 40,000 tonnes of merchandise especially for the Lunar New Year of 2023 (Quy Mao Tet holiday) is on the way to serve the needs of Ho Chi Minh City dwellers. Enterprises participating in the price stabilization scheme are going to supply 25-43 percent of the market demands. The HCMC Department of Industry and Trade estimates that the purchasing power at this upcoming Tet holiday will be much higher than the one of the previous year.

A quick record on the afternoon of October 12 at some wholesale markets and supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City showed that vegetables, fruits, meat, and fish of all kinds were at good prices.

The prices of some consumer goods and fresh food for sale at small and spontaneous points of sale in Ho Chi Minh City have started to hike in the past few days. Sellers explained that freight costs started to climb, so the increase in selling price was inevitable. Meanwhile, large supermarkets and trade centers confirmed that they still run many promotions and offer deep discounts to support consumers.

The prices of many items, such as fruits, vegetables, cooking oil, and fresh milk, at retail points of sale and markets on March 21 increased by 15-40 percent compared to before the 2022 Lunar New Year. Delivery service also added a surcharge of VND5,000-VND15,000 per order. Meanwhile, at supermarkets and wholesale markets, prices of commodities remained stable.

The purchasing power at trade centers and supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City has warmed up recently.

Up to now, although the volume of goods arrived at the three wholesale markets of Hoc Mon, Thu Duc, and Binh Dien has been increasing sharply, the purchasing power remains modest, decreasing by 30 percent, 50 percent, and 60 percent, respectively, because spontaneous markets on the roads around these wholesale markets have taken market share.

From the beginning of January to now, the wholesale markets of Hoc Mon, Thu Duc, Binh Dien have received 2,600 tons, 1,600 tons, and 1,500 tons of goods per day, respectively. Thereby, prices of food and fresh goods have declined by about 20 percent.

Ho Chi Minh City authorities have urged businesses to ensure supply of essential goods and necessities and offer promotion programs for the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday while following pandemic prevention measures.

Although the supply of goods has been increasing, strangely, traders have to move out of the market to be able to sell their goods. The reason is that more and more spontaneous markets mushroom around the market areas and buyers are reluctant to go inside the market because of strict Covid-19 prevention and control regulations.

According to the Department of Industry and Trade of Ho Chi Minh City, 103 out of 234 traditional markets have resumed operations in the city by October 22. Localities that have not reopened markets yet include District 7, Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, and Nha Be districts. It is expected that districts in HCMC will reopen 19 more markets from now until October 25.

The Trade Management Department under the HCMC Department of Trade and Industry on October 8 reported that 34 among 234 traditional markets have reopened.

Despite hesitance, many wholesale markets, as well as traditional markets in Ho Chi Minh City, have begun to increase the volume of goods and open their doors to welcome customers. However, many small traders in wholesale and traditional markets said that they were still worried that spontaneous markets would surround and vie them for goods and customers.