 Inspectors have concluded that there is no evidence of cement speculation in HCM City forcing prices up. Meanwhile, cement prices keep skyrocketing, not by day, but by hour.
“Cement is now very short, and the price will keep increasing.”
This is what buyers have been hearing at construction material shops.
Mui, the owner of Quoc Binh Shop on Nguyen Gian Thanh street in district 10, said: “Cement is now in serious shortage. It is because cement plants are running perfunctorily as they cannot raise the sale prices as per the request by the government.”
Sales agents all have confirmed the information, saying that they are selling in dribs and drabs as supply proves to be very short. The cement price is now hovering around VND70-80,000/pack.
Phung, the owner of Bao Phat Sales Agent on Hoang Hoa Tham street in Tan Binh district, said that it took her five days to queue to get 400 packs of cement from producers. She said that the cement price has increased partially because sales agents have to queue for products. The cement price has increased by VND2-3,000/pack over last week’s level.
The price of stones for making concrete has also been escalating. A shop on Nguyen Quang Bich Road in Tan Binh district is now selling stone at VND220,000/cu m, while another shop in the same district is selling at VND250,000.
Dong, the owner of Huy Dong Enterprise, specialising in construction materials, said that previously, his enterprise bought 20 cu m of stone every night, while it is now purchasing 10 cu m only.
Construction material traders said that the higher prices have made them suffer. Phung said that previously, her agent could sell 400-500 packs of cement a day, while the figure now is 100 packs only. Other products, including bricks and sand, are selling very slowly.
They said that the clients now are mostly half-done construction works or small works which need repair, while there are very few big construction works.
Though sellers threatened that construction materials would be seriously lacking, buyers say that they do not meet any difficulties in buying commodities, except the fact that they have spend more money for them.
The skyrocketing construction material prices have been burdening poor people.
Nguyen Thi Hoa, who was seeking to buy construction materials yesterday, complained that she was confused about the prices, as different shops gave different prices.
Quoc Binh sales agent is selling Sao Mai, Ha Tien and Holcim brand name cement at VND78,000/pack, and selling Cam Pha, Fico brand name cement at VND75,000/pack. Meanwhile, another shop on Ly Thuong Kiet street is selling products at VND80,000 and VND78,000/pack, respectively.
The construction material prices have been increasing continuously over the last time, and no price decrease is in sight.
Nguyen Vuong, a retired man in Tan Phu district, said that he needs to build a new house to replace his existing one, which was built in 1990 and has been degrading. However, as construction material prices keep rising, he will only repair it instead of building a new house.
Trinh, who lives in Tan Binh district, is also weeping over the price increases. She said that the total expenses for her house have increased by VND150mil compared to initial estimates. She has spent the total sum of money she saved for the last 20 years, and has had to borrow VND100mil from banks.
Source: Thanh Nien News - Dang Vy – Kim Toan – Huyen Thu
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