MANILA, Philippines?There is neither panic-buying nor hoarding. Bottled water and instant noodles have just become the new supermarket and grocery stars.

In the wake of Tropical Storm ?Ondoy,? supermarket shelves usually laden with gallons of bottled water are suddenly empty?as if hit by a typhoon.

At the SM Hypermarket in Pasig Monday evening, a store employee said the outlet was out of bottled water. The only brand left was the high-priced Evian.

Mosquito coils, mosquito nets and candles were also sold out.

At the Robinsons Galleria supermarket Monday morning, store personnel had to bring bottled water out of the stockroom to meet the demands of customers.

This was not due to panic buying, said Philippine Amalgamated Supermarkets Association Inc. president Steven Cua.

He said some suppliers were not able to mobilize their delivery trucks due to the heavy flooding in many Metro Manila and provincial areas following the downpour Saturday.

Philippine Association of Supermarkets Inc. secretary general Federico Ples said suppliers had committed to make deliveries by Tuesday and Wednesday.

Cua said there was no need to freeze prices, as directed by the Department of Trade and Industry, as he did not believe anyone would want to take advantage of such an unfortunate event.

?I don?t think anybody has the heart to take advantage of the situation. There?s really no need for the price ceiling. The private sector won?t take advantage of [others? suffering],? he said.

Ples said none of the Pasi members would dare to overprice, considering the magnitude of the penalty.

?Our suppliers promised to sell to us at the same price and we warned our members not to buy from overpricing suppliers,? he said.

Under Sections 6 and 7 of Republic Act No. 7581, or The Price Act, automatic price controls and price ceilings can be imposed on basic necessities in the event of a calamity or emergency.