These days, in the area of 7/5 Square (Dien Bien Phu ward, Dien Bien province), Mr. Ngo Quoc Anh - a small trader specializing in importing kumquats from Hung Yen to Dien Bien for Tet sale - is rushing to arrange pots of plants that have just been loaded.
Talking to a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Quoc Anh said that this year, importing goods is very difficult.
Import prices this year increased a lot, about 35% compared to last year. The main reason is that last year key kumquat growing areas suffered many storms and floods, causing kumquat crops to lose crops and supply to be scarce" - Mr. Quoc Anh said.
Besides the increase in the original price, transportation costs are also a headache for small traders in mountainous areas.
Small traders complained: "Every year the car fare is only about 13 million VND/trip, but this year it has jumped to 20 million VND and there are no cars to rent. Increased input costs force selling prices to also adjust.
According to this small trader, another reason for the fluctuation in kumquat prices is the profitable year. Changes in weather have caused many kumquat gardens to ripen early before Tet or be damaged, reducing the output of beautiful trees.
Currently, Mr. Quoc Anh's booth is selling kumquats with prices ranging from 350,000 VND to 1.8 million VND/tree depending on the size and shape of the tree.
In Thanh Nua commune, considered the ornamental plant garden of Dien Bien province, the kumquat garden of Mr. Tran Van Tam's family (Thanh Dong village) with fruit-laden kumquat trees is being meticulously cared for by the garden owner.
Owning a kumquat garden with a scale of about 500 trees, Mr. Tam said that up to now, about 50% of the trees have been sold wholesale.
The family tries to keep the price stable. The average wholesale price at the garden is about 800,000 VND/tree. For retail customers at the garden, the price ranges from about 1 million VND/tree" - Mr. Tam said.
According to Mr. Tam, to have beautiful kumquat pots to serve the market, growers have to put in a lot of effort.
The weather is different every year, so monitoring and regulating irrigation water is extremely important for the fruit to ripen on time and the leaves to maintain their freshness" - Mr. Tam said.
According to the assessment of garden owners and small traders in Dien Bien, the market will be really bustling starting from after the 15th day of the twelfth lunar month.
The peak usually falls around the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, after people worship Ong Cong and Ong Tao. At that time, the number of shoppers will be large" - a garden owner commented.
