JEDDAH, 1 February 2004 — Tens of thousands of sheep and goats bearing colorful marks were at the huge Halaga Market as buyers in cars and trucks queued up to make their purchases. The number of vehicles created a traffic jam at the end of Palestine Street and some people did not reach the market for several hours.
“I’ve been looking for a good quality sheep. I don’t mind the price,” said Muhammad Al-Sharief, a Saudi who owns a trading company. “I finally bought a Yemeni sheep for SR400.”
A market survey showed prices ranging from SR300 to SR700. Some of the best breeds may go for as much as SR1,000. “We have animals from Australia, New Zealand, Yemen and also some local ones,” Tariq Hussain, a retailer said.
Sulaiman Al-Jabri, an importer of livestock, said there was no shortage of animals. “I myself have imported 75,000 head of sheep. Some of them are awaiting clearance at port; however retail prices are stable.”
Many people have thronged the market for the past two days. Some of those who bought sheep also negotiated with professional butchers. “I’ve hired a butcher for SR150 to come to my house on Eid day,” one Saudi said. Butchers charge a minimum of SR100 and raise their prices depending on how far they have to travel.
Festival preparations were obvious at supermarkets and families were seen with cartloads of purchases. Most of the stores reported increased sales in the past few days. “We’ve had about 25 percent more business this week than last week. Still the overall turnover has been about 30 percent less compared to last year,” a supervisor at Bin Dawood Supermarket said.
“It’s strange that sales are down this year. We understand a downward trend in the case of non-food items but we’re surprised that even food items have been moving slowly,” said a supervisor at a branch of Al-Raya Supermarket.
Even up-market Tahlia Street said sales were down compared to last year despite offers of discounts ranging from 10 to 50 percent.
“This may be because of shopping malls in Makkah and Madinah and the fact that pilgrims no longer stay in Jeddah,” Muhammad Hafiz said. “Except for men’s, women’s and children’s clothes, I have hardly sold anything,” said a store supervisor at Jamjoom Center.
If the weather is good, many families will celebrate Eid on the Corniche. “We’ve hired a cabin at a beach resort on the north Corniche for our celebrations,” an expatriate shipping executive said.
Some of the city’s theme parks and recreation centers have been busy over the past few days as families have been taking their children out. Some families are even camping on the Corniche in tents.
