August CPI increase leads to one-digit average in eight months

CPI is expected to remain as a one-digit indicator for the rest of the year

For the first eight months, CPI increases by 8,31% against the same period last year.

Some experts said that two main reasons pushing CPI in August higher than the previous months are high petrol prices and households’ expenses for the new school year.

Transport and post services top the list of the commodities, rising by 1.31%. However, this is the only group increasing above 1%.

Housing and building materials come next at the rate of 0.93% because of the increase in prices of building materials and the rebound of the real estate market.

Prices of garments and footwear go up by 0.52%, while textbooks and school equipment inch up by 0.15%.

Unexpectedly, foodstuff and catering services increases by 0.11% only, down 0.08% against July.

Hà Nội and Hồ Chí Minh City have the lowest CPI increases. The CPI just goes up by 0.22% in Việt Nam’s biggest city, lower than the country’s average.

In August, the price of the Greenback continues to be on the rise, up by 0.13% compared to July, raising the eight-month figure by 6.36% against December last year.

The GSO predicted that CPI may go up by 0.3-0.4% in September as people tend to spend more on the National Day (September 2), new school-year day and Mid-Autumn Festival.

Việt Nam expects to see one-digit CPI increase this year if there is no negative change in the remaining months.

By Hải Minh