Up to now, both the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Industry and Trade have affirmed that the supply of essential goods for the upcoming Lunar New Year and the first quarter of 2021 is abundant, so people should not worry about shortages of stock and price gouging.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade forecasts that the price of goods during
the Lunar New Year will not see big changes. Photo: Nguyen Thanh

According to the Agricultural Product Processing and Market Development Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development- MARD), the current balance of production supply in the agricultural sector can ensure food and foodstuff demand for the New Year and the first quarter of 2021.

Regarding livestock products, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Toan, Director of the Agricultural Product Processing and Market Development Department said that from now to the end of 2020, on the occasion of the Calendar New Year and Lunar New Year 2021, the consumption demand for livestock products, especially meat and eggs,was forecast to grow by 5-10% compared with the average level.

With the maintenance of cattle and poultry herds, good repopulation of pig herds and strict control of the pandemic, the market will be basically stable and supply-demand balance will be ensured.

However, due to the recent storms and floods, it may be difficult to restore livestock in some localities and transportation among regions and areas also face certain difficulties.

Regarding the distribution stage, at the end of the year and the Lunar New Year 2021, the Ministry of Industry and Trade stated that the purchasing power in the market would increase by 15-20%, focusing on food and foodstuffs.

Speaking toa Customs Newspaper reporter, Mr. Tran Duy Dong, Director of the Domestic Market Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), said the increase in purchasing power was due to consumers’ confidence in macroeconomic stability and the increase in people's income at the end of the year.

"With the information on the supply of goods from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, we are relatively assured that the food supply will meet people’s needs at the end of the year and the Lunar New Year,"said Mr. Dong.

Mr. Dong also recommended that people were tending to switch to high-quality goods with clear origins, so agricultural, forestry and fishery producers and enterprises should pay attention to this.

Regarding prices, the Ministry of Industry and Trade forecasted that commodity prices this year will not change significantly. To meet the needs of people, retail businesses have planned promotions and discounts.

"At local markets, in the days of the end of the year, the prices of fresh food often increase. However, there is a counterbalance from the price stabilization shops, markets, and trade centers, they will keep the prices stable and will contribute to curbing the general price at the local markets,”said Mr. Tran Duy Dong.

Regarding the goods supply during the Lunar New Year holiday, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai said: “We confirm that the supply is not insufficient, there is no"fever"of goods or shocking price increases.”

However, in order to ensure food supply and limit the price increase, especially during the upcoming Lunar New Year 2021, the leader of the Ministry of Industry and Trade requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to regularly review and evaluate the actual data of the supply of essential goods.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development was requested to direct the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development of provinces across the country to work closely with the Departments of Industry and Trade and relevant departments to organize activities to connect consumption between production establishments that have goods production practices and are certified for eligibility offood safety and trading and distribution establishments of clean food.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also suggested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to promote the inspection and control of counterfeit and poor-quality goods and ensure food safety and hygiene during the Lunar New Year 2021, and proactively work with localities to organize many price stabilization stores for consumer goods during the Lunar New Year 2021, especially in rural and mountainous areas.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the supply-demand balance for ricein 2020 is as follows: Production reaches about 43.13 million tons; domestic demand for paddy is 30 million tons; the exported rice volume in 2020 is from 6.5 to 6.7 million tons (equivalent to 13 - 13.5 million tons of paddy).

In terms of vegetables and fruits, in the first eleven months of 2020, the total plant area of ​​vegetables nationwide was about 900,000 hectares, the output reached about 16,182 million tons. However, due to unusual weather conditions, especially in the Central region, green vegetables can face shortages and slight price increases.

For the livestock industry, the livestock situation in the whole country in the first ten months of 2020 developed quite well; diseases in cattle and poultry were basically controlled. The value of livestock production in the first ten months of 2020 grew about 4.0-4.5%; It is estimated that the whole year’s value will increase by about 5.0-6.0% compared to 2019, due to the high growth rate of livestock in the fourth quarter.

For pork, it is in an ongoing recovery momentum, meeting the people’s consumption demand. The total number of pigs in October 2020 increased by 7.6% year-on-year; the output of live pork for the whole year is expected to reach 3,459.3 tons, an increase of 3.9% compared to 2019.