Phuong, who owns a fruit shop in HCMC’s Nha Be Commune, said she had just imported 30 boxes of the fruit, each weighing five kilograms and selling for VND4 million.

The prices are 20% lower than a year ago thanks to higher supply but seven times those of premium local varieties like Luc Ngan lychees from Bac Giang Province, she said.

Kaimana lychees are considered premium in Australia and have dark red skin, thick and crisp flesh, a small seed, and a refreshing, sweet flavor, she said.

They are harvested with stems intact and transported by air to maintain freshness, she said.

Lan Anh, who sells the fruit in Binh Thanh Ward, said her store has sold around 100 five-kilogram boxes since mid-November and plans to import more before supply starts to dwindle in January.

Despite high demand, Lan Anh said many sellers, including herself, only import a few dozen boxes at a time because the fruit has a short shelf life.

In Australia, premium varieties of lychee are often sold in five-kilogram boxes at US$80 each. Kaimana is one of the country’s 40 lychee varieties and the most common one for export to Vietnam.

Australian lychees are popular in Vietnam partly because they often arrive a few months after local supply runs out after the main season in April-July.