PHUKET: Panic buying and pressure on prices are evident on Phuket as the effects of the Bangkok floods ripple across all of Thailand.
Thailand's five-day special holiday for Bangkok and provinces immobilised by floods has turned into a national ''hoarding day''.
Thousands of people on the holiday island of Phuket, 650 kilometres south of the floods zone, have stripped bare shelf after shelf in local supermarkets. The panic is being repeated all over Thailand.
And in Phuket's entertainment capital of Patong, a representative of bars and other venues has warned that price rises are probably on the way.
At the main Tesco Lotus supermarket in Phuket City yesterday, huge bags of dried dog food were being piled high into one pickup as I arrived.
Nearby, boxes of Jacob's Creek wine were going into another vehicle. From pet food to luxury items, shoppers were making the most of a big day out.
Inside the store, it was unusually crowded for a Friday afternoon. Trolleys were clearly being loaded with items that were not immediately needed.
There was no bottled water. No large packs of toilet paper. No canned tuna or dog food. The only milk left was in bottles due to expire on Sunday. Essentials, non-essentials . . . the shelves looked very sad.
It may be that what Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha and Phuket MP Raewat Areerob were told on Thursday on their tour of supermarkets is true, that supplies of essential goods are still coming.
It could be that large trucks have pulled up at the Tesco store since I was there. But shoppers are clearly not taking any chances.
A spokesperson for Tesco in Bangkok said they had established several hubs around Thailand to distribute goods more adequately, including one in the South, but it's plain there has been a run on goods all over the country.
People have no confidence in supplies continuing to come through what's likely to be at least one more month of flood-induced hardship.
The kind of plunder that was apparent yesterday, with many shelves bare of all kinds of goods, indicated that if the floods continue for weeks, tough times lie ahead for suppliers.
Telephone calls to several other parts of the south indicated that Phuket people are not the only ones engaged in panic buying.
The Two Thailands - the provinces under water and the provinces still high and dry - are now being united again by shortages.
Pressure for price rises is a concern for the President of the Entertainment Association of Patong, Weerawit Kuresombut, who told Phuketwan reporter Chutima Sidasathian today that some bars had already nudged prices higher.
Profiteers are especially evident in alcohol sales. He said prices of beer and food for onsale in venues had risen 10 to 15 percent since serious flooding began.
''The floods are certainly having an effect on Patong already,'' he said. ''We are likely to see more in one or two weeks, depending on supplies.
''There are certainly likely to be price rises that will be passed on to customers if the situation can't be resolved soon.''
Bangkok Hopes Overflow Banks as Floods are CheckedThailand's five-day special holiday for Bangkok and provinces immobilised by floods has turned into a national ''hoarding day''.
Thousands of people on the holiday island of Phuket, 650 kilometres south of the floods zone, have stripped bare shelf after shelf in local supermarkets. The panic is being repeated all over Thailand.
And in Phuket's entertainment capital of Patong, a representative of bars and other venues has warned that price rises are probably on the way.
At the main Tesco Lotus supermarket in Phuket City yesterday, huge bags of dried dog food were being piled high into one pickup as I arrived.
Nearby, boxes of Jacob's Creek wine were going into another vehicle. From pet food to luxury items, shoppers were making the most of a big day out.
Inside the store, it was unusually crowded for a Friday afternoon. Trolleys were clearly being loaded with items that were not immediately needed.
There was no bottled water. No large packs of toilet paper. No canned tuna or dog food. The only milk left was in bottles due to expire on Sunday. Essentials, non-essentials . . . the shelves looked very sad.
It may be that what Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha and Phuket MP Raewat Areerob were told on Thursday on their tour of supermarkets is true, that supplies of essential goods are still coming.
It could be that large trucks have pulled up at the Tesco store since I was there. But shoppers are clearly not taking any chances.
A spokesperson for Tesco in Bangkok said they had established several hubs around Thailand to distribute goods more adequately, including one in the South, but it's plain there has been a run on goods all over the country.
People have no confidence in supplies continuing to come through what's likely to be at least one more month of flood-induced hardship.
The kind of plunder that was apparent yesterday, with many shelves bare of all kinds of goods, indicated that if the floods continue for weeks, tough times lie ahead for suppliers.
Telephone calls to several other parts of the south indicated that Phuket people are not the only ones engaged in panic buying.
The Two Thailands - the provinces under water and the provinces still high and dry - are now being united again by shortages.
Pressure for price rises is a concern for the President of the Entertainment Association of Patong, Weerawit Kuresombut, who told Phuketwan reporter Chutima Sidasathian today that some bars had already nudged prices higher.
Profiteers are especially evident in alcohol sales. He said prices of beer and food for onsale in venues had risen 10 to 15 percent since serious flooding began.
''The floods are certainly having an effect on Patong already,'' he said. ''We are likely to see more in one or two weeks, depending on supplies.
''There are certainly likely to be price rises that will be passed on to customers if the situation can't be resolved soon.''
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What??? I am going to have to pay 24.20 baht for a small bottle of Chang at the cheap bottle shop off Bangla Road instead of 22 baht previously? This 10% price hike is outrageous. Take a hike, price hikers!
Posted by Kanga on October 29, 2011 12:28