Many goods increased in price

Vegetables and food are 10-50% more expensive than at the beginning of the year, plus the increase in electricity prices makes consumers worried.

For more than a week now, Ms. Thao in Binh Thanh District (HCMC) has been worried about the price hikes when going to the market. "Before, I only needed 20,000 VND to buy 350 grams of lettuce and herbs, now I have to spend up to 30,000 VND," she shared.

A survey at traditional markets and grocery stores in Ho Chi Minh City showed that green vegetables increased by 10-20% compared to the previous month and nearly doubled the same period last year. Vegetables such as lettuce, herbs, tomatoes, pumpkin and sweet potatoes are 30-50% more expensive.

In Thai Binh - one of the localities affected by storm Yagi, Ms. Nguyen Hoa (Thai Binh City) was also surprised when each bunch of sweet cabbage was twice as expensive as before, up to 10,000 VND.

Ms. Phuong, a trader at Bo Market (Thai Binh City) said that the supply of goods after the storm was less because the flower gardens of local growers were damaged. Fresh goods at the market were mainly imported from other places, so the price increased.

Not only vegetables, pork, chicken and seafood prices have also skyrocketed. Each kilogram of red tilapia is about 100,000 VND, and cleaned catfish is 350,000-400,000 VND. Pork has also increased by 20-28% compared to the same period last year, 100,000-180,000 VND per kilogram, depending on the pork belly or loin.

Agricultural products (coffee, pepper, cocoa...) also established new price levels. According to the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association, each kilogram of pepper is about 250,000-270,000 VND, roasted and ground coffee is 160,000-250,000 VND. Sugar prices also increased to 29,000-30,000 VND per kilogram, an increase of 8% over the same period last year. Many essential consumer goods are at high prices, putting great pressure on consumers.

"Each item is a little more expensive, increasing the family's daily meal costs by 10%," Ms. Lan Anh (Go Vap district, Ho Chi Minh City) shared.

Commodity prices are climbing, according to businesses, due to a shortage of supply and a spike in input costs. Mr. Hoang Thanh Hai, Director of Hai Nong Safe Vegetable Cooperative (Cu Chi District, Ho Chi Minh City) said that after Typhoon Yagi, vegetables from the South had to be transported to the North, causing prices to increase. In addition, prolonged rain during the recent storm in the South caused severe damage to vegetables, with many growers' yields decreasing by 50%.

Similarly, with pork, Mr. Nguyen Kim Doan, Vice President of Dong Nai Livestock Association, said that the supply of this product has decreased sharply due to African swine fever. "The epidemic, along with storms and rains, has caused the death of more than 26,000 cattle and nearly 3 million poultry. Restocking in the North is facing difficulties," Mr. Doan said, predicting that live pigs could exceed 70,000 VND per kilogram in the near future, pushing up retail prices at the market further.

Vissan Deputy General Director Phan Van Dung also said that the high price of live pigs has caused many challenges for the company. The company is trying to control prices by reducing costs in non-essential stages to support consumers.

According to the General Statistics Office, food prices have increased sharply in provinces and cities directly affected by Typhoon Yagi and its aftermath. The nearly 0.3% increase in the consumer price index (CPI) in September was due to the contribution of the food group, which increased by 0.9% - the highest adjustment since February.

Ms. Tran Khanh Hien, Director of Research at MB Securities, commented that the CPI has been on a downward trend since August, mainly due to the adjustment in world oil prices. According to her, Typhoon Yagi only affected the prices of vegetables and fruits in the short term. In the basket for calculating the consumer price index, this product does not have a big impact, while pork, rice, etc. account for a larger proportion.

In the first 9 months of the year, CPI increased by 3.88% compared to the same period last year. However, analysts are still optimistic about the average inflation in the first 9 months, when it decreased from 4.1% in the previous 6 months to 3.9%. This shows that Vietnam has good control over inflation, creating room to achieve the annual target of 4-4.5% as set by the National Assembly.

However, prices of goods and services face challenges in the last quarter of 2024 and early next year, as electricity - an input fuel for production - increased by 4.8% from October 11, to VND2,103.11 per kWh (excluding VAT).

According to calculations by the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN), each month, households using 200-400 kWh will pay an average of 32,000-47,000 VND more; over 400 kWh is 62,000 VND. The additional cost for the group using electricity for business services is 247,000 VND and for production is 499,000 VND per month.

Ms. Minh Thu's family (Long Bien, Hanoi) paid about 1.6 million VND (including VAT) for electricity in September, for more than 570 kWh used. She estimated that when the electricity price increased by 4.8%, the electricity bill next month would be about 78,000 VND more. She said that this level was still acceptable, but she was worried that it would be higher in the summer months and that many goods and services would "jump up and down with the electricity price".

Meanwhile, the statistics agency said that the adjusted energy price caused the CPI to increase by about 0.04%. "The impact of electricity prices on the CPI will be more evident in the first quarter of 2025. However, the pressure is not too strong unless there is a double impact from oil prices," said Ms. Tran Khanh Hien.

Experts from MB Securities forecast that the CPI may drop to 3.5%, with annual inflation around 3.8-3.9%. Similarly, Associate Professor Dr. Dinh Trong Thinh, an economic expert, said that the impact on the CPI is insignificant, around 0.04%. Therefore, annual inflation is around 3.8-4.1%, still within the set target. However, he noted that management agencies need to closely monitor the market to avoid the situation where prices of goods and services "follow the rain".

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