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First quarter inflation to stay flat
06/08/2010 - 145 Lượt xem
The board said the stability would hold as long as the weather remained moderate, bird flu was kept under control and domestic purchasing power resumed after the Tet holidays.
The country's total retail sales value in February reached VND43.5tril (US$2.73bil), lifting the figure of the first two months to VND90.1tril, up 19.2% year-on-year, the board reported.
Despite the price increase for many consumer goods and entertainment services during the Tet holidays, the CPI in February rose by 2.1%, over the expected level of 2.5 to 3%, thanks to the Government's market watch efforts.
In February, food and foodstuffs saw the highest price increases among the 10 commodity and service categories that are used to determine the country's CPI, with an increase of 3.2%. Cultural, sport and entertainment services followed with a surge of 1.9%.
Rice prices in February remained stable at VND2,800-3,100 per kilogram. Though rice export demand will surge next month, the board said the price would stay stable, as the Mekong Delta, the country's largest granary, was approaching harvest season.
In addition, with the abundant supply sources, prices for medicines, fertiliser and cement were also expected to stabilise next month.
While the prices of poultry and meat would continuously decrease following Tet holidays, the prices of seafood and sugar were forecast to remain high due to higher export demands in the fisheries industry and material shortages in the sugar industry.
In the wake of the ongoing political instability in the Middle East, the board also warned the price of crude oil would not decrease next month and fluctuate around $65 per barrel. The price could even rocket in April or May, reported the board.
The country aims to keep this year's CPI under 8%.
Source: Viet Nam News, 01/03/2006
