00:00 Mary Ann is a young divisoria student.
00:03 She and her mother are from Lucena, Quezon.
00:06 While visiting her relatives in Manila,
00:08 they also bought school supplies.
00:11 When it's rush hour, there are a lot of people.
00:15 It's more crowded here than other places.
00:19 The classes are three weeks before the public school opens.
00:23 But some want to be the first to avoid the high prices
00:27 while the entrance is getting closer.
00:29 It's more expensive than the next week.
00:33 Especially when the entrance is getting closer.
00:35 It's more expensive.
00:37 It was the same last year.
00:39 We bought it early.
00:41 The stories of the vendors say that the price of some items is really increasing.
00:45 In particular, the notebooks and pad papers.
00:48 The usual writing notebook, for example,
00:50 costs 20 pesos each.
00:53 The ordinary pen is 4 pesos the cheapest.
00:57 There is also a more expensive pen that costs 7 pesos each.
01:01 The prices depend on the brand.
01:03 For example, you can buy basic crayons in 8 colors for 12.50 pesos.
01:09 But if you want the Crayola brand,
01:11 they sell it for 28 pesos.
01:13 For the glue, you can buy 20 pesos for 2 pieces in the basic brand.
01:18 But for Elmer's glue, it's 25 pesos each.
01:21 For the notebooks, the tube is really just a barrier.
01:25 That's why it's really necessary.
01:27 Because that's the main thing for students.
01:31 That's why other consumers need to reduce their shopping list.
01:35 Before, we bought one rim.
01:37 Now, we only buy half of it.
01:38 For now, the buyers are not getting any lower.
01:41 According to the vendors, most of the buyers are wholesalers
01:45 or the vendors who sell.
01:47 But they expect to pick up the sales next week.
01:51 A.C. Nichols, CNN, Philippines.
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