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HCM City provides $25m loan to stabilise Tet prices
The HCM City People’s Committee on Monday decided to provide interest-free loans worth VND422 billion (US$24.8 million) to 13 foodstuff companies that have signed up for a programme to stabilise prices and ensure adequate supplies during Tet (Lunar New Year).
The annual programme seeks to secure supply of eight essential items - rice, sugar, cooking oil, meat, poultry eggs, processed foods, fruits and vegetables - a month before and after Tet, which falls on February 14 next year.
The companies will also be required to sell the items at 10 per cent below market prices during the country’s most important festival.
The HCM City People’s Committee has ordered the companies to increase the supply of the goods by 20-40 per cent during the period and ensure quality and food hygiene and safety.
The companies in the programme are the Sai Gon Trading Group, HCM City Union of Commercial Co-operatives, Sai Gon Industrial Foodstuff Joint Stock Company, Sai Gon Agriculture Incorporation, Vissan, Cau Tre Export Goods Processing Joint Stock Company, Phu An Sinh and Ba Huan.
They will sell through 1,508 outlets, three times higher than last year.
Nguyen Thi Hong, deputy chairwoman of the HCM City People’s Committee, said relevant departments and participating companies should closely monitor demand to promptly adjust supplies.
Supplies of rice, cooking oil, and sugar would be lower than last Tet, while processed foods, meat and poultry, fruits and vegetables would be higher, she added.
The companies have been ordered to secure adequate supply of backyard chicken for Tet offerings by the city’s 1.3 million families.
An estimated 3,000 tonnes of poultry meat and 25 million eggs will be available this year compared to 2,000 tonnes and 15 million eggs last Tet.
Nine companies joined the programme last year, getting loans worth VND409 billion ($24 million).
vietnamnews
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