A SUPERMARKET price war descended into a frantic rush to snap up bargain cases of Coca-Cola yesterday as customers cleared the shelves of the cut-price soft drink.
Branches of ParknShop and Wellcome, which both slashed the price of 24-pack cases of Coke to $35 in an intensified price war, saw stocks wiped out within hours of opening yesterday.
The rush followed ParknShop's announcement of discounts on Friday in response to the June launch of media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying's instant-hit direct sale delivery service AdMart.
Wellcome joined the fray by matching the Coca-Cola price and the two supermarkets were packed yesterday while rival chains CRC and Guangnan were eerily quiet as they stayed out of the fray.
A shop assistant at Wellcome in Hong Kong East said its inventory of 400 cases of Coke had been snapped up before midday.
Housewife Ma Ah-heung stocked up with two cases, which she gave to her teenage children to carry home.