Hotpot on menu for Hongkongers as weather cools but inflation turns up heat as beef, vegetable prices rise
- Temperature plummets to 18.1 degrees Celsius, lowest since March and coming straight after weekend heatwave with highs of 29 degrees
- Drop coincides with rising meat, vegetable prices pushing up cost of hotpot dinners for those eating at home
Shoppers are having to dig deeper into their pockets to buy hotpot ingredients such as beef and vegetables as the weather turns cooler while inflation turns up the heat.
The city recorded the lowest temperature of the autumn so far when the mercury touched 18.1 degrees Celsius on Monday morning.
Forecasters also issued a strong monsoon signal with high winds compounding the sense of winter encroaching after temperatures fell from highs of 29 degrees over the weekend.
The drop in temperature coincides with rising beef prices pushing up the cost of hotpot dinners, a Hong Kong favourite, particularly during the cooler months. Monday’s temperature was the lowest since a daily minimum of 17.9 degrees was recorded on March 23 this year.
For many residents, the arrival of the cooler months means sitting down as a family to hotpot, a shared dining experience typically involving a bubbling broth and a range of ingredients for dipping, such as thinly sliced beef and chopped radish.