Hiking prices of majority of foodstuffs unreachable for low-income people
June 26
As prices of the most of
foodstuffs remarkably rose in mid-2023, prices of foodstuffs and foods that
general public daily consume were on the rise, according to the consumers.
As breakfast meals such as tea,
noodle and Monhinga are also sold at high prices, consumer people miss the
chance to control their income and expense on a daily basis.
Tea shops in public residential
wards sell K600 to K1,000 per cup of tea, K400 per Indian flat bread and K500
per fried twisted dough sticks. For the time being, noodle or Monhinga shops on
the roadside sell K1,000 to K1,200 per cup of meal but advanced shops raise the
prices at K1,500 to K1,800 per meal. In the past, consumers could spend K200 in
minimum on the meal mixed with steamed glutinous rice and boiled garden pea.
But, such a price rises to K500 per meal in minimum now.
Advanced tea shops arrange
options for consumers to taste various items of breakfasts as a one-stop
service but prices of these meals are equal to the cost for a daily consumption
of an ordinary family.
“The land plot for the shop was
hired at K1.8 million per month and the agreement was signed for at least three
years to five years. We have spent some K20 million on construction of the shop
and decorations to attract customers. Moreover, we have to spend K150,000 per
waiter. Now, 15 waiters are working there. In addition, we are controlling
selling of meals to the consumers at fair prices amid rising prices of basic
commodities,” said U Khin Win Kyi, owner of an advanced tea shop in Thingangyun
Township told the Global New Light of Myanmar-GNLM.
These advanced shops always
calculate various kinds of expenses such as rental charge of shop, labour
charges and general taxes as well as hiking prices of commodities.
“Currently, most of the families
take a practice of thrift depending on their incomes and expense as much as
they can. Advanced shops sell K3,000 per dish of Indian flat bread, K1,200 per
cup of tea, K1,800 per cup of Monhinga plus any fritter, K500 per fried twisted
dough sticks, K1,000 per parata and K2,000 per Chapatti. So, ordinary
low-income people are unreachable for these meals,” said Ko Tun Min, a taxi
driver from South Okkalapa Township.
As such, consumption charge of
breakfast for the persons from basic strata reaches between K1,000 to K1,500
per daily.
As prices of rice, meat and fish
are hiking on a daily basis, roadside food stalls sell K1,500 to K1,700 per
meal, up from K1,200.
A dish of meat meal is priced at
K2,000, up from K1,500. In the past, egg meal was the most reliable for
low-income families but prices of chicken egg hit K250/300 and duck egg
K300/350. Water convolvulus rises to K500 per small bundle, up from K100 per
small bundle. Likewise, most of the vegetables are also on the rise.
Most of the residents in Yangon
city critically face unbalance between income and expense due to rising prices
of goods, daily consumption, house rental charge and bus fares.
It can be said that number of
consumers at advanced restaurants and beer pubs are really minority, and a few
number of people can make a tip for relaxation on the holidays.
Currently, the majority of
dwellers of Yangon city are critically trying to overcome daily challenges of
hiking prices for basic needs of their families.
No comments