The market is deserted, many stalls in Ho Chi Minh City are still… closed for Tet

TPO - On the 6th day of Tet, most markets and supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City have resumed business, with abundant goods, many items on sale, and discounts of up to 50%. However, purchasing power is quite slow.

February 3, 2025 | 14:36

TPO - On the 6th day of Tet, most markets and supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City have resumed business, with abundant goods, many items on sale, and discounts of up to 50%. However, purchasing power is quite slow.

On February 3, at many large traditional markets such as Hoa Hung (District 10), Ba Chieu (Binh Thanh District), Phu Lam (District 6), etc., traders reopened for business. Some vegetable and fruit traders began importing goods to sell on the 4th day of Tet.

“Vegetables such as lettuce, green onions, tomatoes... cannot be refrigerated, so new goods must be imported. Because it is still Tet, gardeners are on holiday, and all vegetables have been harvested by farmers to sell before Tet, so the imported output is not much, the price has increased by about 20-30%. The input price has increased, but my retail price has only increased by about 3,000-5,000 VND/kg. It is expected that after the full moon of January (15th of the first lunar month), the price will stabilize again” - Ms. Le Thi Ha, a trader at Hoa Binh market (District 5) said.

At Tan Dinh market (District 1), although it was the noon rush hour, the market was quite deserted, with only a few meat and vegetable stalls having customers. Many other product lines such as fruits had few customers. Many fabric and clothing vendors remained closed and had not reopened.

“Some retailers go to pagodas and pilgrimages after Tet so they haven’t reopened yet. Most retailers will reopen after the full moon of January” – Ms. Thuy (vegetable seller at Tan Dinh market) said.

According to the management boards of some traditional markets, purchasing power is still slow. Most people still have food reserves from Tet and only go to the market to buy vegetables, noodles, pho and fresh products. By the 6th, prices of essential food items were the same as before Tet.

Specifically, grade 1 pork loin costs 91,000 VND/kg, grade 2 pork loin costs 86,000 VND/kg, thighs 90,000 VND/kg, lean pork 115,000 VND/kg, baby back ribs 160,000 VND/kg, ready-made domestic hen (1 - 1.5kg) 120,000 - 140,000 VND/kg, ready-made duck 85,000 - 100,000 VND/kg.

On February 3, most traditional markets in the city reopened for business, mainly stalls selling livestock, poultry, vegetables, etc.

Many stalls selling clothes and fashion shoes at traditional markets are still... closed for Tet.

Information from the management board of three wholesale markets in Ho Chi Minh City (Hoc Mon, Binh Dien, Thu Duc) said that the amount of goods arriving at the market since the first day of Tet has reached about 700 tons/day and night, equivalent to 30% compared to normal days. Currently, the amount of goods is enough to supply the market in Ho Chi Minh City as well as neighboring localities.

Supermarkets have also reopened, with shelves full of fresh goods such as seafood, pork, fresh noodles, wet rice paper... Prices are stable, many items are discounted such as cabbage down to 10,900 VND/kg, cucumber 28,000 VND/kg, beef tomatoes 35,000 VND/kg, buy 1 get 1 free pork roll priced at 50,400 VND/kg, chicken eggs 25,000 VND/pack (10 eggs)...

Dalat tomatoes cost from 39,000 - 55,000 VND/kg. Prices of items at supermarkets have stabilized back to normal.

A representative of the Vietnam Retailers Association said that prices of some items such as vegetables and food at traditional markets have not increased because supermarket systems maintain operations throughout Tet, always ready to meet people's shopping needs when markets are temporarily closed for Tet.

Mr. Le Huynh Minh Tu - Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade of Ho Chi Minh City said that Tet shopping power at modern distribution channels increased by 15 - 20% over the same period. Total retail sales of goods in January 2025 in Ho Chi Minh City reached more than 53,700 billion VND, an increase of 11.4% over the previous year.

The Department of Industry and Trade of Ho Chi Minh City will continue to mobilize distribution systems in Ho Chi Minh City to operate continuously before, during and after Tet, meeting people's shopping needs throughout Tet.

Uyen Phuong

Source: https://tienphong.vn/cho-thua-vang-nhieu-sap-hang-o-tphcm-van-con-nghi-tet-post1713969.tpo