HCM CITY  --  With the Lunar New Year approaching, demand for dried foods and confectionary is surging in HCM City’s traditional markets.

Dried foods such as shrimp, cuttlefish, cat’s ear and thin-top mushroom, and vermicelli (made of cassava) are sold at markets like Bà Chiểu (in Bình Thạnh District), Phạm Văn Hai (Tân Bình District) and Thanh Đa (Bình Thạnh District).

New products here include dried beef, cuttlefish, chicken, and anchovy, which are traditionally served to guests during the Tết holidays.

According to a shopkeeper at Thanh Đa Market, the demand for vermicelli, cat’s ear and thin-top mushroom and dried bamboo shoots are expected to rise further.

Beans and peas, which are used to make cakes and sweetened porridges, are also in demand at these traditional markets.

Their prices are not higher than last year, with dried beef remaining at VNĐ180,000 per kilogramme, green bean at VNĐ60,000, thin-top mushroom at VNĐ200,000-250,000, and first-grade dried bamboo shoot at VNĐ200,000-300,000.

A shopkeeper in Bà Chiểu Market said shops have stocked large volumes of goods for Tết.

According to the management of Bà Chiểu Market, since the country’s economy has been doing well in recent years, improving people’s purchasing power, high-quality, highly-priced goods are in demand.

An executive at the Saigon Co.op Investment Development JSC (Saigon Co.op) said not only shops in traditional markets but also supermarkets, convenience shops and malls have stocked lots of goods to meet Tết demand. 

To stabilise prices, Saigon Co.op has stocked inventory worth VNĐ3 trillion (US$132 million).

It has also announced promotions one month ahead of Tết.

With the traditional markets facing intense competition from the city’s supermarkets and convenience stores, Việt Nam News discovered shopkeepers there quoting reasonable prices unlike in the past.

According to Lê Văn Tiến, deputy manager of the Hóc Môn Wholesale Market, sales would rise from 28 January and peak around a month later. The New Year is on February 5.

He said the market would join hands with the HCM City Food Safety Management Division to monitor and inspect the quality of goods.

The market would also work to enhance traders’awareness of the need to ensure goods quality, he said.—VNS.