Vietnam’s CPI inches up 3.88 pct in 9 months

Vietnam's consumer price index (CPI) went up by 3.88 percent year on year in the first nine months of this year, according to data released by the General Statistics Office (GSO) on Sunday. The nine-month CPI growth was contributed by the 4 percent increase of food and beverage services, said the office. In September, price hikes were reported in nine out of the 11 items in the calculation basket. Items posting the most significant price hikes last month included education with a 2.09-percent increase, food and beverage services with a 0.92-percent increase. According to head of the GSO Nguyen Thi Huong, the country's core inflation rose averagely 2.69 percent in nine months. Vietnam has set the target of keeping the CPI for this year at 4-4.5 percent. Source: The Namibia News Agency