Electronics market hit by price rises, poor publicity

Sales of consumer electronics and household appliances in Ha Noi and HCM City have slowed despite heavy, and sometimes confusing, sales promotions by retailers.

Pham Quang Thinh, a shopper in HCM City, said he wanted to buy a 40-inch Samsung LCD TV advertised at an electronics centre for VND16 million (US$744), a discount of nearly VND4 million, but then he found the same offered on the website of a rival discount centre at VND14.99 million ($697).

A 32-inch LG LCD TV could also be found at competing retailers at prices up to VND400,000 apart.

Refrigerators imported from South Korea were being offered by one retailer at a discount of VND6.7 million ($311) each, but some consumers discovered that the sale price was equivalent to prices readily obtained at smaller retailers.

Disparity among retail prices was normal, said Nguyen Minh Thu, deputy director of Thien Hoa Electronics Centre, admitting that her centre’s discount prices were sometimes equivalent to regular prices elsewhere. Some products in her centre were more expensive than those in other places, some much cheaper, she said.

Nguyen Hai Bang, head of marketing for Nguyen Kim Electronics, told Viet Nam News that customers who thought promotional campaigns from electronics centres were illusory should visit his centre and see for themselves.

Higher prices across-the-board for these prices may be the major factor scaring away shoppers. A recent market survey shows that prices of some LCD TVs have increased about 15 per cent since earlier this year.

A 32-inch LG LCD TV retailed at around VND7 million ($325) in February and now cost VND8 million ($372).

Nguyen Van Dao, deputy director of Samsung Vina Electronics Co, said that the prices of Samsung televisions rose by about 15 per cent this year – a figure lower than the increase in manufacturing costs.

A circuit board used in the assembly of the units, for instance, now cost his company 30 per cent more than it did last year. Volatility in the US dollar exchange rate had also increased the costs of imported electronics and parts, he said. – VNS

Tags: Electronics market