The Consumer Council today (September 30) released its weekly price survey on a basket of 40 food and household items available at major supermarket chains and other retail outlets in the Wong Tai Sin District.
In the analysis were listed the top 10 products with the most price differences found in this survey. Top on the list was: Fine Fabric Liquid Detergent 1L ($19 to $44.6, or a price difference of 134.7%).
Following closely were: Treatment Shampoo 750ml (from $26 to $42.9, or 65%); Daily Therapy Shampoo 700ml ($36 to $57.9, or 60.8%); Cuttlefish Ball 170g ($10.9 to $16.9, or 55%); Sliced Pork in Szechuan Style 198g ($8.9 to $13.5, or 51.7%); Cheese Cracker 197g ($9.9 to $14.9, or 50.5%).
The remainders of the top 10 list were: Peanut Oil 900ml ($29.6 to $43.9, or 48.3%); Stain Fighter Toothpaste 150g ($15 to $21.9, or 46%); Pure Corn Oil 900ml ($25.9 to $36.9, or 42.5%); All Shiny White Toothpaste 160g ($12 to $16.9, or 40.8%).
Other highlights in this weekly price survey covering (a) prepackaged food products, (b) household and personal care products, and (c) fresh produce, include:
Prepackaged Food
- A total of 23 items in this category at 12 retail outlets, covering major supermarket chains, frozen food and grocery stores, health-and-beauty chain stores and drugstore in the Wong Tai Sin District, were compared for their prices.
- Considerable differences between the lowest and the highest unit prices were recorded, ranging from 5.9% to 55%.
- Overall, major supermarket chains were generally more
expensive, but a number of items were offered at discounted prices
for bulk purchase. For example, one major supermarket chain offered
Sardine in Oil 125g at a discounted price of $21.8 for 2, averaging
$10.9 each, but even after discount the price was still higher than
a smaller supermarket outlet; another major supermarket chain
offered the same product at $18.5 for 2, averaging $9.25 each, thus
cheaper than the other retail outlets.
Household/Personal Care Products
- A total of 12 items in this category at 13 retail outlets was surveyed, with price differences ranging from 16% to 134.7%.
- Overall, prices at major supermarket chains and
health-and-beauty chain stores were generally higher than those at
drugstores, but some offered price discount incentives for bulk
purchase. One major supermarket chain, for example, offered Fine
Fabric Liquid Detergent 1L at $49.8 for 2, averaging $24.9 each,
but even after price discount, drugstores were still comparatively
cheaper.
Fresh Produce
- Due to possible variations in the place of origin, quality, size or freshness of fresh produce, direct price comparison is considered not suitable.
- A total of 5 items from 3 stalls at the Sheung Fung Street
Market and 3 major supermarket chains were included in the survey
for reference of consumers.
Results of the weekly price survey are available on the Council's website www.consumer.org.hk/pricewatch, its Consumer Advice Centres, and the Public Enquiry Service Centre of Wong Tai Sin District Office.
Price comparison report (Chinese
only) :
Microsoft Excel format /
PDF format