Hanoi’s consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.57 percent in August against the previous month due to the soaring price of fuel, said Hanoi’s Statistics Office on August 20.

The figure also represented a 2.86 percent increase from the last month of 2011 and was a rebound after two consecutive months of decline, said the office.

Out of the 11 baskets of commodities measured, only post and telecommunications services remain unchanged against last month.

The biggest price hike was seen in the group of housing, electricity, water, fuel and building materials which rose 2.89 percent, followed by transportation services at 1.1 percent. The hike mainly stemmed from the rising price of fuels such as gas, petrol, and electricity, said experts.

Month-on-month price increases ranging from 0.33 percent to 0.65 percent were recorded for garment, footwear, beverages and cigarettes, household goods and utensils, medicine and health services.

Although not included in the CPI calculation, during the month, the price of gold inched up only 0.05 percent while the price of US dollar was down 0.25 percent against July.-VNA