Usually stores reopen on the 4th day of Tet in Ho Chi Minh City but this year just a few are doing so, most deciding to wait until the 6th day.
Many stores remain closed
Many stores on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Nguyen Trai (District 1), Cach Mang Thang 8 (District 3) streets are still closed.
Some stores on Le Loi Road (District 1) reopened for a while then closed again. Many stores reopening later than last year because of the long Tet holiday.
Most of civil service employees had 9 days off on this Tet holiday so many have spent time traveling or visiting their hometowns.
Hoang Minh Thuan, an electronics component trader on Bui Thi Xuan Road (District 1) has been forced to postpone his deal because civil services won't be available until February 22nd.
Not many people have been going to markets to buy things. “I have reserved a lot of food for Tet. I just went to buy some vegetables,” said Ngoc Lan from Binh Thanh District.
“Traders haven’t gone to work yet because they wait for civil service employees to come back to work on February 22nd. I still reopened my store today because it’s a good day to me,” said Ha, a small businessman at Ba Chieu market.
Many private companies reopened their offices on February 19 (the 6th day of Tet).
