Businesses in HCM City are ensuring a sufficient supply of goods at stable prices for Tết.  VNA/VNS Photo by Hoàng Tuyết

HCM CITY — Businesses in HCM City are preparing a wide range of essential goods commonly consumed during the upcoming Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday to ensure sufficient supply and stable prices.

Large retailers have worked with manufacturers and suppliers to stock two or three times the amount of goods compared to other months, particularly pork and other fresh meat, eggs, fruits, vegetables and processed food.

The HCM City Union of Trade Cooperatives (Saigon Co.op) has spent nearly VNĐ6 trillion (US$262 million), an increase of 20 per cent compared to last year, to stockpile goods.

Nguyễn Ngọc Thắng, director of Co.opmart's operation division, said the retail system of Saigon Co.op, such as Co.opmart, Co.opXtra, Co.op Food, Co.op Smiles, and Cheers, would keep price stablisation and offer a discount up to 50 per cent for thousands of products for Tết in the year-end shopping season.

Saigon Co.op will also offer deep discounts, especially fresh food, for 10 days before Tết to support consumers amid the pandemic, along with gift vouchers. 

Nguyễn Ngọc An, general director of Vissan JSC, said the company had plans to spend more than VNĐ754 billion ($33 million) to stock 4,200 tonnes of processed foods and 2,800 tonnes of fresh food, up 6 per cent and 8 per cent compared to the same period last year, respectively, to meet the rising demand ahead of Tết holiday.

Local businesses are providing more varieties of processed goods for Tết, including beverages, confectionery, dried fruits and jams, at stable prices.

Nguyễn Nguyên Phương, deputy director of the department, said many businesses had agreed to participate in the city’s annual market stabilisation programme, accepting price restraints and deep discounts to maintain market share and increase sales revenue.

He added that the increase in raw material prices had strongly affected commodity prices and and people’s purchasing decisions.

Phương said the department would discuss solutions with businesses to help them to overcome difficulties.

According to the department, in November, the total retail sales of goods and services in the city reached VNĐ55.5 trillion ($2.4 billion), a strong decline of 41.3 per cent year-on-year.

The city’s modern distribution systems includes 237 supermarkets, 46 shopping centres and 3,026 convenience stores, besides the three wholesale markets of Bình Điền, Hóc Môn and Thủ Đức, ensuring a supply of essential goods and foods for its residents. — VNS