The domestic beer market this Tet holiday will not face any shortages or price hikes, thanks to a 30 per cent supply increase, confirmed beer producers around the country.— Photo baodautu

HCM CITY (Biz Hub)— The domestic beer market this Tet holiday will not face any shortages or price hikes, thanks to a 30 per cent supply increase, confirmed beer producers around the country.

Vietnam Investment Review (VIR) quoted Le Ngoc Dao, Deputy Director of HCM City's Department of Industry and Trade, as saying that the reported retail shortage over the last few days in HCM City is a ruse – the supply for this Tet had in fact increased by 20-30 per cent.

Owing to this, there should be no shortages. Consumers must be careful when buying beer and not get tricked into paying more than they should, she told the newspaper.

The Sai Gon Beer Alcohol Beverage Joint Stock Corporation's (Sabeco) yield this Tet has increased by 20 per cent compared with last year. Moreover, the corporation has already distributed the holiday orders to their distributors and retailers.

Guaranteeing sufficient supply for our distributors and not increasing the price has stabilised the market, chairman Phan Dang Tuat told VIR.

The Ha Noi Beer Alcohol Beverage Joint Stock Corporation (Habeco) who accounts for 80 per cent of Ha Noi's beer market, said that it would supply more than 140 million litres of beer this Tet, a year-on-year rise of 13 per cent.

Director Nguyen Hong Linh said that this would be more than sufficient to meet demand and there would be no case of shortages, he affirmed.

Like Sabeco, Habeco said they did not increase the price of any of their products.

It costs about VND190,000 (US$9) per barrel of Ha Noi Beer. The company also ordered their distributors to strictly adhere to the price structures.

A company that supplies famous brand-name beers also confirmed they intend to meet the demand and keep the price stable.

The VIR report attributed the meeting of this extra demand, to the efforts of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

In particular, Deputy Minister Ho Thi Kim Thoa, who since the beginning of November last year, was ensuring companies implement measures to stabilise the market over Tet.

In addition, the companies were required to report their production and sales, she added. — VNS