VIBRANT FESTIVE ATMOSPHERE AS CHINESE NEW YEAR FAST APPROACHES

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 (Bernama) -- With about a week left before the Chinese New Year is celebrated on Feb 17, the atmosphere in shopping malls and supermarkets across the country is becoming more vibrant as the Chinese community is busy preparing for the celebration.

In Johor Bahru, for example, shopping malls are not only visited by locals but Singaporeans are taking the opportunity to get essential goods at reasonable prices.

A Bernama survey of the 2026 Chinese New Year Carnival in Taman Johor Jaya found that the annual event is offering a variety of festive items through more than 70 stalls selling festive decorations, clothing, hampers and traditional delicacies.

Singaporean Aaron Xiang, 40, said it has become a habit for his family to cross the Johor Causeway to attend the carnival to experience the excitement first-hand, in addition to the favourable prices and exchange rate.

Soh Cher Wei, 37, a private sector employee, said the carnival has become his family's main destination for the past two years because it offers a variety of goods including 'bak kwa' (traditional Chinese smoked meat jerky), home decorations and clothing," said Soh, from Pasir Gudang, who prefers to celebrate the festival modestly with family and friends.

In the capital, the owner of the Happy Meal pastry shop on Petaling Street, Shirley Tan, 69, said orders at her shop have increased since the beginning of this year due to high demand for traditional Chinese New Year pastries.

Running the business for 23 years, she said, egg tarts, pineapple tarts, durian puffs, various types of cakes, and kuih kapit are among the most popular products with regular customers, including those from Hong Kong, Australia and China.

Chiew Gunchin, 56, the owner of the Wish Flora Garden flower shop in Pudu, both real and artificial flowers and ornamental plants ordered from China, such as pussy willow, bonsai and bamboo, as well as red decorations believed to bring good luck and longevity, are the preferred choices for customers at the shop.

Also sharing his story, a festive decoration trader in Penang, Kelvin Fong, said that demand, particularly for lantern decorations, Chinese calligraphy stickers, and red envelopes or ang pau, has also increased in the past two weeks.

"Usually, every year the Chinese buy new decorations for the celebration, and the prices of the items we sell are still the same as last year... no increase," he said.

Meanwhile, Penang Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) chairman Tony Goh said hotel bookings for next week showed a significant increase, with hotels in urban and beachfront areas recording up to 75 per cent occupancy rates and expected to continue rising until next Thursday.

But it is an opposite situation in Selangor, according to Malaysian Budget & Business Hotels Association (MyBHA) president Dr Sri Ganesh Michiel, who said hotel bookings were quite slow, including for hotels targeting corporate customers.

"The (CNY) festive period, being close to the fasting month, affects market sentiment and consumer spending patterns. For transit hotels, the booking rate for the week of Feb 16 is only around 20 per cent so far. Although bookings are usually made at the last minute, the overall momentum is still slow," he said.

Meanwhile, a survey of shopping malls in Setia Alam and Shah Alam in Selangor found that the premises were adorned with traditional decorations, including pagoda towers, classic architecture with golden roofs, red lanterns, symbolic golden horse statues to celebrate the 'Year of the Horse', as well as activities such as children's costume contests, yee sang tossing ceremonies, lion dance performances and Chinese calligraphy competitions.

In Perak, there is good news as the price of mandarin oranges is cheaper compared to last year, providing relief to fruit enthusiasts and encouraging wholesalers to increase their supply to meet demand.

According to the owner of the Sin Lee fruit wholesaler in Kampung Jawa, Tan Aik Lee, 55, the price of a box of quality mandarin oranges is now RM26 compared to RM29 last year, allowing for an increase in the supply to 15 containers from 13 containers last year to meet the demand that usually rises at the last minute.

Another trader, Goi Ching Choy, 62, said that the fruit wholesalers always attract a crowd of various ethnicities, including Malays and Indians, who take the opportunity to buy mandarin oranges and other fresh fruits every time the Chinese New Year festival approaches.

-- BERNAMA