50 pct discount to stimulate HCMC consumption

At a Co.opmart in Go Vap District, Hoa was surprised to find a liter of soybean oil costing VND35,000 ($1.55), 17 percent lower than at grocery stores.

"I bought five liters and received one additional liter for free."

This is part of Co.opmart’s discount program that covers over 11,000 essential products with prices lowered by up to 47 percent, said its director of operations Nguyen Ngoc Thang.

There are also discounts of up to 50 percent for milk, soda and kitchenware on the weekends, he added.

Other retail chains like Bach Hoa Xanh, GO! And Big C are also offering discounts from 5 to 50 percent.

Pork producer Vissan is giving out 5-20 percent discounts on its products, including fresh meat.

Chicken egg producer Ba Huan gives its customers a free pack of smaller eggs they buy a big pack for VND37,000.

This is the biggest promotion program the company has ever conducted, said chairwoman Pham Thi Huan.

"Even though we lose out on profits, we can support customers to buy more goods at lower prices during a difficult time."

Media representatives of supermarkets said demand has plunged 50 percent from pre-pandemic levels, and therefore the companies are giving out promotions to shift inventories and stimulate consumption.

Companies are also preparing for rising demand at the end of the year as the annual Lunar New Year holiday Tet, which falls in February next year, approaches.

Vissan is recruiting 300 temporary staff to increase production for the end-of-year shopping season. It plans to increase its amount of fresh food by 8 percent from last year.

Ba Huan has made plans to increase its production by 50 percent to 1.5 million eggs a day.