Consumer price index up 0.1% in August as medical costs soar

The consumer price index in August rose 0.1% from the previous month, primarily as a result of the move to increase healthcare costs in more than ten provinces across the country.

Photo for Illustration (Photo: Thai Thien).

The index was up 2.57% year on year and 2.58% against December last year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Consumer prices in August were also partly boosted by higher education costs as tuition fees were increased in some provinces, furthermore, the approaching school year drove up prices of stationery items.

Medicine and healthcare services climbed 6.18% while education costs were up by 0.47%.

On the contrary, transport costs posted the largest decrease thanks to two rounds of petrol price cuts while food prices also fell due to abundant supplies.

In August, gold prices rose by an average of 1.72% while the US dollar was fairly stable, hovering around VND22,300.

(Source: NDO)