Durian prices in Singapore drop, but sellers say unlikely to match Malaysia’s lows

SINGAPORE — Durian prices in Malaysia may have plummeted to rare lows of just a few ringgit per fruit for popular varieties amid a bumper harvest, but sellers in Singapore do not expect their prices to fall as sharply.

They told The Straits Times that although prices here have dipped significantly over the past few days, the decline is likely to be more tempered.

The price of Mao Shan Wang, a popular variety among Singaporeans, has fallen from a peak of around $28 per kg in March to $20 per kg as at June 23. 

Less premium varieties like Red Prawn have dropped from about $14 per kg to $12 per kg.

Sellers expect the price of Mao Shan Wang to bottom out at around $18 per kg — on a par with the price in December 2025, when Malaysian durian farms last experienced a glut of the fruit.

“This is the cheapest it’s been in the last five years,” said Kelvin Tan, co-founder of 99 Old Trees, a durian dessert and fruit shop in Outram Park.

“But while the quantity coming in is a lot, it’s flooded with a lot of durians from new, younger trees, so the fruit quality is severely impacted... It takes a longer time to sieve out the good fruit,” said Tan, who has seen a slight uptick in sales.

Singapore imports the majority of its durians from Johor and Pahang, where the durian seasons are typically around June and July, and December.

Hotter temperatures mean that trees bear fruit earlier and in greater abundance, resulting in an oversupply. 

Malaysians have reportedly shown up at stalls with sacks to snap up the fruit.

According to Malaysian media, Musang King, or Mao Shan Wang, is currently sold for only around RM6 (S$2) a kilogram, while varieties like Red Prawn have dropped to as low as RM2 per fruit.

“(The prices) won’t be that low here,” said Melvin Chua, founder of Durian Garden in Cambridge Road that does mostly home deliveries.

“As a producer country, (Malaysia is) flush with stock and can afford to sell it... cheap, but our operating costs here are very high,” said Chua, who has run his stall for the last 13 years.

“Once you add on the costs of overheads, transport and GST, we cannot lower it until that level.”

It was a sentiment shared by Linda Ang, one of the owners of Combat Durian in Rangoon Road, who said that she has taken in about 50 per cent more stock than usual in the past few days.

As durians have a short shelf life, she does not want to take more than she can sell in a day.

It remains to be seen if the decline in prices will translate to higher sales in Singapore.

“Malaysia keeps advertising that their durians are so cheap, and since it’s the school holidays, many Singaporeans can go there directly to the durian farms... so we have to wait and see,” said Ang.

She added that Combat Durian usually sees its best crowds on weekends.

At the store on the evening of June 23, a retiree, who wanted to be known only as Mr Chia, told ST he has seen Mao Shan Wang durians going for as low as $12 per kg or less at less reputable stalls in Singapore.

“They are cheap, small and odd-shaped, and the taste is not good... I suspect they are not even from Malaysia,” said the long-time customer, who bought his usual four durians for his family.

While he had previously bought 50kg baskets – about 25 durians in each – directly from Malaysian farms at a low price and had no problems with the quality, he said it is hard to consume everything within two to three days, before the durians turn bad.

“I would rather pay more and get a few good quality durians from Combat than (commit to) a whole basket,” he added.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.