Business

March CPI inches up 1.16 percent, lowest yearly rise in 5 years

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in March inched up 1.16 percent from the same period last year, the lowest rise since 2016, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
March CPI inches up 1.16 percent, lowest yearly rise in 5 years ảnh 1Illustrative photo. (Source: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – The Consumer Price Index (CPI) inMarch inched up 1.16 percent from the same period last year, the lowest risesince 2016, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Compared to the previous month, the March CPI slid 0.27percent on the back of abundant supply and weaker demand after the Tet (LunarNew Year) holiday ended, said GSO Director General Nguyen Thi Huong on March29.

The average CPI of the first quarter rose by 0.29 percent,the lowest increase for Q1 recorded in the last 20 years, while Q1’s coreinflation picked up 0.67 percent.

Huong attributed the Q1’s CPI increase to the rice price whichsurged 8.55 percent year-on-year from January-March as a result of risingglobal price and high demand for premium rice during the Tet holiday.

The prices of several main groups of goods and services alsomoved upward, pushing up the costs of catering services by 2.08 percentyear-on-year.

The cost of education services rose 4.49 percent due tothe latest raise in school fees under a roadmap set in Decree 86/2015/ND-CPdated October 2, 2015.

Meanwhile, the government’s activation of aid packagesfor people and businesses affected by COVID-19 was among factors helping easethe pressure on Q1’s CPI, according to the GSO official. The VietnamElectricity (EVN)’s power bill cut in the second and fourth quarters of lastyear caused the electricity price to decline 7.18 percent in January, whichcontributed to a CPI decrease of 0.24 percentage points during the period.

The average petrol and oil prices in Q1 also fell by 9.54percent year-on-year, making the three-month CPI to drop 0.34 percentage points.The resurgence of COVID-19 in early 2021 has weakened travel demand, causing airfares,train fares and holiday packages costs to decrease by 24.28 percent, 10.03percent and 4 percent, respectively.

Domestic gold price in March was down 2.97 percentmonth-on-month but up 16.84 percent year-on-year, making the average gold pricein Q1 increase 23.27 percent./.
VNA
#Consumer Price Index #CPI #March 2021 #Q1 2021 #core inflation #COVID-19 #Tet holiday #Vietnam #Vietnam news #Vietnam news agency #Vietnamplus
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