Data released by the General Statistics Office of Vietnam on October 24 shows that the country’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) in October rose by only 0.85 percent compared to the previous month, an increase of 7 percent year-on-year.
This shows a significant slowdown, as in September CPI increased by 2.2 percent from August. Since the beginning of this year, CPI has surged 6.02 percent compared to December last year.
Notably, CPI growth rate in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City was less than 0.5 percent in October.
Among commodity groups, medicines and healthcare saw the strongest rise at 5.94 percent, of which the latter soared by 7.78 percent; education picked up 1.88 percent, of which educational services added up 2.1 percent; housing and construction material climbed 1.09 percent. Post and telecommunication service was the sole commodity group which posted a decline of 0.2 percent.
The country’s CPI decelerated as restaurants and catering services, which account the most in the CPI basket, barely inched up at 0.29 percent in October. Gold price index put up 4.64 percent and the US dollar price index ticked up 0.06 percent over the previous month.
According to experts, at this pace, the country may keep CPI below 8 percent this year.
In related news, seafood exports have been targeted to reach US$7.5 billion by 2015, as discussed at a conference on December 24 in Can Tho City. According to participants, in order to achieve an export turnover of $7.5 billion by 2015, and $20 billion by 2020, the seafood industry needs more investments and target higher production.
The government must help seafood producers to build bigger and more prestigious seafood brands to establish Vietnamese seafood in the global market.
