HCMC supermarkets offer discounts amid low demand

Hoa of Go Vap District said she has bought many products at discounts. "A three-kilogram pack of detergent currently sells for VND110,000 (US$4.69) instead of VND168,000 at the supermarket. The price of fresh noodles used to be VND30,000 per kilogram, but is only VND25,000 now."

Oanh of Binh Thanh District said for the last two days she has gone to the supermarket to buy pork and vegetables because their prices have been cut by 10-30%.

According to supermarket chains, Tet is approaching but demand is down 10-20% from previous years and so they are offering big discounts.

A manager at MM Mega Market said many people are tightening their purse strings due to the difficult economic situation, and so his supermarket is offering discounts of up to 50% on essential products like food and its own branded items.

Satra, Bach Hoa Xanh and Big C have also reduced the prices of foods and other products. Big C has cut pork prices by 6-17.5%, and Satra is selling dishwashing liquids and softeners at 5-20% discounts.

Shoppers buy pork at a Big C supermarket in HCMC. Photo by Linh Dan

Supermarkets also have abundant stockpiles, with volumes up by 20-30% from Tet 2022 and 40-50% from normal days. They are 100% higher in the case of fresh foods, essential goods and confectionery.

Many major supermarket chains like Co.opmart, MM Mega Market, Satra, and Big C said they would remain open throughout Tet except on New Year, Jan. 22.

According to the HCMC Department of Industry and Trade, businesses have spent some VND22 trillion to stock up.

The city’s three wholesale markets are getting 13,000-15,000 tons of goods every day, 80% more than normal, according to the department.

Some 240 supermarkets and 3,019 convenience stores besides 47 shopping malls supply 1,800 tons of foods every day.