January 18, 2024, 04:45 PM
Fairprice will freeze the prices of eight popular seafood items and offer promotions on another five vegetable items over the Chinese New Year period.
This is to help Singapore residents "cope better with the cost of living crunch", the supermarket giant announced in a Jan. 18 press release.
The items include Chinese pomfret, red grouper, grey prawns, Shanghai green, nai bai, and shiitake mushrooms.
The full list can be found here.
Items vulnerable to price fluctuations
Higher demand for produce like seafood and vegetables in the festive period will "inevitably" drive prices up, said Vipul Chawla, group chief executive of the FairPrice Group (FPG).
However, in view of the challenges that families may be facing, the retailer has decided to freeze prices in hopes of "helping customers alleviate this pressure".
He added:
"As Singapore’s largest retailer, we want to reaffirm our commitment to easing consumers’ financial burdens, and giving all in Singapore even more reasons to celebrate this festive season.”
According to FPG, market surveys conducted from Jan. 5 to Jan. 18 showed that there has been a gradual increase in the prices of popular items at wet markets.
Prices were also found to be an average of 44 percent higher compared to those those in FairPrice stores.
Defraying the rising cost of living
On Jan. 3, FairPrice Group announced that it would be distributing FairPrice return vouchers to those who spend their CDC vouchers at FairPrice stores.
Shoppers who spend S$80 in a single transaction at any FairPrice store till Jan. 24 will receive an S$8 FairPrice return voucher.
This promotion originally ran till Jan. 17, but was extended for a week till Jan. 24 due to "popular demand".
In November 2023, the group announced that it would absorb the one per cent GST increase on 500 essential items in the first half of 2024.
This, Chawla said, was in line with its commitment "to alleviate the rising cost of daily essentials, particularly for the more vulnerable among us".
Top photo from FairPrice's Facebook page
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