Since 1985 Lhasa has built the Western Suburb Market, the North Suburb Market, the Lhasa Commercial Trading Center, the Materials Supply Station, the Lhasa Goods Transport General Station, the Foreign Trade Building, the Ethnic Group Trading Market, and some other large markets. These all help enrich local supplies.

With Lhasa more open to the outside world, the city sees the flourishing of non-governmental enterprises. Large numbers of individual business people come to make money in the city. They run restaurants, Karaoke halls, and fashion stores; provide various services such as long-distance transportation and repairs; work as tailors; and sell cereals, vegetables, fruit, meat and butter. The Barkor, Congsaikang, and Dragon King Pool Markets have been set up for farmers to sell their produce in the city.

The Lhasans are satisfied with this abundant supply of daily needs, sold at a price they deem reasonable. As the city is located at an elevation of 3,700 meters, it has a freezing climate. In the past, no crops and vegetables could be grown in the winter, and even in the summer there were only a few peasants of the Han and Hui ethnic groups who grew cabbages, carrots, and a few other kinds of vegetables. People who went to work in or visit the city, such as Chinese and foreign government officials, felt sorry that the Lhasans had such a short supply of vegetables.

Following the peaceful liberation of Tibet in 1951, the Central Government stressed the need for a supply of vegetables for people in Lhasa. On July 1, a farm that grew new varieties of vegetables on a trial basis was introduced, playing a major role in improving produce supplies in the city. Beginning in the 1980s, the Lhasa city government put the market supply of vegetables, butter, fruit, and meat on its agenda, and efforts have since been made for this purpose.

By 1989, the city set up 1,300 hectares of vegetable farms. They produced 22.5 million kg of vegetables a year, including 17 million kg of commodity vegetables. Vegetables available in the market now come in 46 varieties, including asparagus, lettuce, wax gourds, tomatoes, garlic bolts, celery, and green peppers. In Lhasa today, even turtles, eels, sea cucumbers, lobsters, leeches, lily roots, loquats, watermelon, bananas, and grapes are available. Many of these are shipped to Lhasa by air from Chengdu, Xi'an and Lanzhou, but are sold at an affordable price.