Vietnam-grown Musang King durian prices plunge by half

Loan in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 8 is selling a kilogram of Musang King durian flesh at VND650,000 ($27.68), down by half from early March.

This is the lowest price of the variety she has seen in five years selling the fruit.

"There is an abundant supply from southern localities. Two years ago I had to order a week in advance, but now I can source them daily."

A vendor in District 1 has been sourcing two or three kilograms of each shipment amid falling prices.

"I have been buying four times as much as in March," the vendor said.

On social media sellers are offering "unprecedentedly low prices" at VND700,000 per kilogram of flesh.

In the south, farmers are selling their Musang King durian at around VND130,000-150,000 per kilogram for the whole fruit.

Oanh in Can Tho said she recently sold a ton at VND150,000, down 40% in price from a month ago.

Dang Manh Khuong, a trader in the same city, said that the abundant supply has caused durian prices to fall by 50-70% in recent months, depending on the variety.

Although durian is now in harvest season in Mekong Delta provinces, Chinese buyers have been cutting their purchases, causing a price drop.

Malaysia’s Musang King is considered the "best durian in the world" and grown by Vietnamese farmers in the Central Highlands and the Mekong Delta.

Industry insiders estimate that the Musang King production in Vietnam has surged by up to fivefold in the last few years.