Laos’ inflation posts two-digit growth

Vientiane (VNA) – Laos’ inflation increased to a record of 12.8 percent in May against the same period last year, according to the latest statistics from the Lao Statistics Bureau.

The increase was attributed to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine that has led to a worldwide shortage of crude oil supply, pushing up global oil prices.

The agency said the country had to increase fuel prices twice in May. Therefore, the oil price in May went up by 92.6 percent year-on-year. In addition, the continued devaluation of the local currency kip made the price of imported goods increase sharply.

These factors caused higher costs of production and living, hence an increase in prices of all commodities.

In a bid to tackle economic difficulties facing the country, a steering committee has been established to put forth solutions to secure adequate fuel, regulate commodity prices, stabilise the supply of foreign currency, and manage exchange rates./.