From May 10, the average retail price of electricity officially increased from VND 2,103.11 to VND 2,204.07 per kWh (excluding VAT), equivalent to an increase of 4.8%. This increase is similar to October 2024.
In Hanoi, some restaurants have adjusted their selling prices. Some noodle and fried soup restaurants have increased the price by 5,000 VND per bowl.
A noodle shop in Linh Dam (Hoang Mai district) has just announced an increase in price after a long time of maintaining the same level.
According to Mr. Le Huy - the restaurant owner, due to the sharp increase in input material prices, especially meat, green vegetables, gas and spices, increasing selling prices is a must to ensure the quality of dishes and maintain operations.
It is mandatory to increase the price by 5,000 VND per portion. From the previous popularity of 30,000 VND, most dishes in the menu have been adjusted to 35,000-40,000 VND/serving.
Mr. Huy shared: Input material prices started to increase slightly about 10 days ago, when the official average retail price increased by 100.96 VND per kWh. The price of 30,000 VND/appearance is no longer suitable. We are forced to adjust prices to maintain operations, even though we know it will affect the number of customers".
The owner of the noodle shop said that with 2 stores in operation, the average electricity bill is 10 million VND/month. Electricity prices increased by 4.8%, simply calculating the electricity bill, and having to spend at least VND 500,000/month.
"In the food business, even if there are fewer customers, the restaurant still has to adjust the deal regularly. I also want to save on electricity bills but I don't know how to save them" - Mr. Huy said.
Not far away, another pho restaurant also hung a sign announcing the price increase. According to this restaurant owner, there were many types of pho that were only 35,000 VND/bowl before, but now the lowest is 40,000 VND.
In addition to increased electricity and raw materials prices, site clearance costs are also a big burden for many restaurant owners, especially in the city center. This has led many small eateries to consider increasing prices or reducing scale.
The restaurant owner revealed that the restaurant is renting a premises for up to 30 million VND/month. The homeowner continuously demands an increase, the price each year is higher than the previous year.
"Linh Dam area is densely populated, everyone thinks that business is favorable, so the landlord often demands to increase the rental price. In fact, restaurants are struggling to survive. We have to manage everything to avoid increasing the selling price but still ensure quality. Revenue tends to decrease due to the increased number of customers spending" - the restaurant owner said.
Meanwhile, updated price developments at some markets in Hanoi show that prices of green vegetables and food have shown signs of increasing slightly. For example, mustard at 18,000 VND/kg, tomato at 18,000 VND/kg, cabbage at 15,000 VND/kg, water spinach at 10,000 VND/bunch, pork belly, ribs at 150,000 - 160,000 VND/kg, etc.
Ms. Le Thi Hoa (living in Cau Giay District) said that only market goers can clearly see the silent increase in prices after each increase in electricity prices.
"Last November, after the electricity industry announced a 4.8% increase in electricity prices, after only 1 week of going to the market, many types of products increased. In May this year, electricity bills continue to increase, goods also increase according to electricity prices" - Ms. Hoa said.
Ms. Ha, a trader at Dich Vong market (Cau Giay) said: "If the electricity price increases, the goods cannot decrease, it has been like that until now".
A survey by Lao Dong shows that the majority of consumers are worried about goods "hugging" electricity.
Notably, from May 10, the average retail price of electricity has increased by 4.8%, to a new level of more than VND 2,200/kWh. This is an input fuel for production, making many people worry that commodity prices will continue to be pushed up in the coming time.
