Decreased Consumer Spending During Ramadan 1401; Merchants Complain of Market Slump

Ramadan has now passed the halfway point, yet contrary to long-standing tradition, the anticipated market boom during this month has not materialized, and merchants are complaining about the lack of customers.

Although officials in Ibrahim Raisi’s government have repeatedly promised “price control,” the Iranian market is moving in a different direction, and the accelerating price increases have caused the level of citizen purchases during Ramadan 1401 to show a significant decline compared to previous years.

• Half-Kilogram Purchases

Among the common purchases during this lunar month is the preparation of sweets such as “zoolbia and bamiyeh,” and according to the head of the confectioners’ union, this year’s sales volume compared to previous years is not noteworthy.

Ali Bahremmand told ILNA news agency that “the volume of people’s purchases has decreased” and explained that “instead of buying one kilogram of zoolbia and bamiyeh, people are satisfied with buying half a kilogram.”

Gholamreza Noori Qazlajeh, vice chairman of the special commission for economic boost and production surge in the Islamic Consultative Assembly, assessed “field supervision” in “relevant agencies” as weak in Bahman 1400 and, pointing out that “we were unable to control the rising process of essential goods prices and rates continue to rise daily,” stated: “We could not apply the brakes to price increases.”

• Decline in Purchasing Power

This is while on the twenty-eighth of Farvardin, a board member of the beef sellers’ union had reported a “10 to 15 percent decrease in calf meat purchases during Ramadan.”

Nima Habibifar, referring to the fact that “people’s budgets” have decreased and as a result red meat purchases have taken a “downward trend,” stated regarding the market condition: “Supply has decreased and demand has also decreased due to price increases and the decline in consumers’ purchasing power.”

Ibrahim Raisi in Khordad 1400, in the midst of controversial presidential election campaigns, made economic promises including “changing the current situation in favor of the people,” “making inflation single-digit,” or “prioritizing people’s tables.”

• Merchants’ Complaints

On the other hand, the head of the traditional soup and stew sellers’ union reported a “decline” in purchases of this category of seasonal products during Ramadan and emphasized that in the new year, the volume of soup and stew purchases compared to the years before the coronavirus outbreak has taken a “declining trend.”

Hossein Mohammadi, stating that “decreased purchasing power and price increases have caused a drop in soup and stew sales,” emphasized that “many businesses are complaining about the decline in soup and stew sales.”

On the eve of Nowruz 1401 and at the end of Esfand 1400, despite the traditional process of the Iranian market which usually creates noticeable activity in the buying and selling of certain goods such as clothing, dried goods, and fruits, various unions and professional associations related to “Nowruz sales” and “holiday shopping” in Iran had reported a “noticeable decrease” in people’s visits.

• Unwavering Enthusiasm for Dates

However, in this context, the head of the national date association considered its consumption during this month “the same as last year” and stated: “Since the amount of exports and cold storage inventory has not shown noticeable changes compared to last year, we can conclude that date consumption is like last year.”

Mohsen Rashid Farkhidid noted that currently “turmoil in the date market” has subsided after more than two weeks into Ramadan, because “people have purchased dates for one month of Ramadan during this period.”

The slump in Iran’s food and beverage market is occurring at a time when in recent years, the prices of goods and food items needed by the Iranian people have increased significantly, and the efforts of the thirteenth government to contain and control the prices of these items have so far been unsuccessful.

Source: Voice of America