The recent heavy rains have damaged vegetable and fruit crops in HCM City and Đà Lạt, pushing up prices. — VNA/VNS Photo Đinh Văn Nhiều

HCM CITY — The stormy weather in the south has hit vegetable and fruit output, leading to higher prices in HCM City and Đà Lạt.

Nguyễn Bình Phương, deputy head of business and marketing at the Thủ Đức Agro Market in HCM City, told Người Lao Động (The Labourer) newspaper that the volume of fruits and vegetables coming to the market on August 11 was lower than usual.

The effect of the destruction due to the storm has been worsened by the facts that farmers are stockpiling their fruits for the Ghost Festival on Thursday rather than selling them and there has been a drop in shipments from Lâm Đồng Province, he said.

The volume of vegetables coming from Đà Lạt to the market has reduced by 20-25 per cent and prices of items like spring onion and tomato have increased by several thousand đồng, he added.

Đào Thanh Đức, deputy director of the Phước An Co-operative in the city, said the frequent heavy rains in the past few days have damaged crops.

Farmers in Lâm Đồng including Đà Lạt also said vegetable prices have increased due to losses due to rain.

Nguyễn Lam Sơn, head of a business that grows and supplies vegetables and recently lost three hectares of crops, said a vegetable scarcity is likely in the near future. — VNS