Nha Trang: Retail rice prices cannot decrease deeply

Since the Lunar New Year, while the export price of rice has decreased sharply, the price of some types of rice in the retail market in Nha Trang City has decreased but is still high.

Prices down but still high

On the morning of March 18, we visited some rice retail establishments in Nha Trang and noted that the prices of many types of rice had decreased. According to rice traders, since the Lunar New Year, the prices of some types of rice have gradually decreased. Up to now, the retail price of rice has decreased by about 2,000 - 3,000 VND/kg but is still high. Specifically, currently, local rice varieties such as: Thom rong, sticky dong, Thom noi, and round rice... are priced at 14,000 - 15,000 VND/kg. Common fragrant rice varieties such as: Taiwan (Go Cong) are priced at 23,000 - 23,500 VND/kg; Thom jasmine is 16,000 - 17,000 VND/kg depending on the type; Loc Phuong is 17,000 VND/kg; Jasmine milk is 17,500 - 18,000 VND/kg; Cho Dao resources 19,000 - 20,000 VND/kg; Nang Hoa 18,000 VND/kg; Jasmin 17,000 VND/kg; fragrant rice from Dak Lak fields costs 16,000 - 17,000 VND/kg...

A rice business on Tran Nguyen Han Street, Nha Trang City. (Photo taken on the morning of March 19)

The reason for the decrease in rice prices is due to the impact of India lifting the ban on rice exports, along with the fact that the country is in the middle of the winter-spring rice harvest season (the biggest crop of the year), so the output is abundant. However, some traders also admit that Vietnam's rice export prices have decreased sharply due to competition with other countries in the region, but the retail price in the market is still high because intermediaries control the price. Along with that, the cost of transportation, premises, storage, and labor have all increased, affecting the cost of products, making it impossible for retail rice prices to decrease significantly.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Lai - a rice trader on 23/10 Street, Nha Trang said: "Currently, the transportation fee for rice from the Western provinces to Nha Trang has increased from 600,000 VND/ton to 800,000 VND/ton. In addition, normally, during and after the Lunar New Year, rice prices will increase, so before Tet, traders have imported a large amount of rice for reserve. However, this year, the price of rice after Tet has decreased, and the amount of rice that traders imported at high prices before Tet has not been sold out. This is also one of the reasons why rice prices cannot decrease immediately. In the coming time, when traders sell all their reserve rice and import new goods, the price of rice may decrease further."

ST rice still maintains price

Currently, the prices of ST rice at traditional markets and businesses are still the same as before Tet. Of which, ST21 is priced at 25,000 - 26,000 VND/kg; Ong Cua ST25 is priced at 40,000 VND/kg; Ong Cua ST25 Rice - Shrimp is 42,000 VND/kg; Velvet sticky rice (Northern sticky rice) costs 28,000 - 30,000 VND/kg, hill sticky rice costs 32,000 - 35,000 VND/kg, goose wax sticky rice costs 20,000 VND/kg... Ms. Hoang Thi Hang (Vinh Diem Trung urban area, Vinh Ngoc commune, Nha Trang) said: "On the morning of March 18, I bought a 5kg bag of ST21 rice for 125,000 VND. This is a price almost unchanged compared to the time when rice prices peaked in 2024. I hope that in the coming time, the prices of all types of rice will decrease, contributing to stabilizing the market, reducing living expenses for people because income does not increase, while gas prices, pork... all increase".

The price of purple fragrant rice is listed at a business establishment near Xom Moi market on the morning of March 19.

Explaining the reason why the price of ST rice has not decreased, some traders said that it is due to the increase in costs for employees, stalls, warehouses, etc. and the distributor still maintains the wholesale price. According to an official who used to work in the Khanh Hoa Food Industry, ST rice is not purebred, produced in small quantities, not on a large scale, and only has a winter-spring crop each year to ensure quality, so traders often stockpile a lot, and the output on the market is limited. On the other hand, the price of ST rice is not much affected by the decrease in export prices because domestic demand is quite high, so the price is difficult to decrease.

According to some supermarkets in Nha Trang, they only focus on the mid-range and high-end rice segment, which fluctuates little, so they have not reduced their prices. Meanwhile, supply contracts between distributors and supermarkets are often long-term, making retail prices less affected when rice prices decrease. In order to stimulate consumption, some supermarkets have launched promotional programs and introduced products to attract customers. Specifically: Go! Nha Trang Supermarket reduced the price of Ca Mau ST25 King Rice Ecological Rice 5kg from 245,900 VND to 191,900 VND/bag; Neptune ST25 fragrant rice 5kg bag from 228,900 VND to 178,000 VND/bag. At Lotte Mart Nha Trang Supermarket, the price of ST25 Neptune specialty fragrant sticky rice 5kg bag decreased by 21%, to 195,500 VND/bag; ST24 Neptune specialty fragrant sticky rice 5kg bag reduced by 26%, down to 159,500 VND/bag; ST25 Lua - Tom fragrant rice 5kg bag reduced by 17%, down to 189,900 VND/bag; some types of brown rice reduced by 19 - 20%... In addition, some large supermarkets, stores, and Bach Hoa Xanh in Nha Trang are offering discounts on some types of rice from 5 to 20%. KHANH HA

Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/kinh-te/202503/nha-tranggia-gao-ban-le-chua-the-giam-sau-ced4506/