March CPI drops 0.19 percent
(VOV) - Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) in March fell just 0.19 percent from February, bringing the three-month price index to 2.39 percent, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
The decline reflects the true nature of the market trend as the prices of commodities are stabilized due to a low consumer demand after the traditional Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday.
As a result, many businesses are now struggling with high inventory levels.
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The March CPI represented a year-on-year increase of 6.64 percent, or 6.91 percent higher than last year’s average.
Food and foodstuff prices fell dramatically by 0.53 percent, while beverages and tobacco prices decreased slightly by 0.08 percent.
Transport and telecom service costs dropped by 0.25 percent and 0.05 percent, respectively.
The GSO said that rice prices in the world market are plummeting, and the export price of Vietnamese rice has dropped US$10-20 per tonne.
Overall, economists say the low inflation in March was mainly due to the weak supply and demand as the Government continued to prioritize its goals of controlling inflation and tightening monetary and financial policies.
Local gold prices also decreased remarkably following globl fluctuations as well as the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) policy for managing gold bullion.
In the first quarter of this year, the gold price in Vietnam dropped 0.8 percent while the Vietnam dong (VND) and US dollar (USD) exchange rate dropped 0.05 percent compared to the previous year.