The Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday is fast approaching but the purchasing power for Tet products appears to be declining, worrying many businesses as they have basically completed preparations for sales.

The Hanoi Department of Industry and Trade said the city has prepared essential commodities for sale during Tet with a total value of an estimated VND39.5 trillion ($1.66 billion), up 15 per cent compared to last year.

In Ho Chi Minh City, businesses have prepared more than 30,000 tons of goods, a year-on-year increase of 15-30 per cent.

Businesses committed to not raising the price of commodities before or after the Tet holidays.

However, retailers are concerned as purchasing power has shown signs of declining, especially as the employment and incomes of many workers have been negatively affected by a decline in export orders.

To boost purchasing power, many producers and distributors have introduced promotional programs and even reduced the profit on certain products in order to meet consumption targets.