>> Fears of inflation stirred by latest petrol price hike
>> Petroleum prices hit record highs in Vietnam
>> Finance Minister: Petroleum, power price hikes to offset losses
Petroleum price hikes may raise Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) by 0.4% this month, said a local official.
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| Petrol prices could add 0.4% to CPI this year |
At the government’s regular meeting on March 30, Nguyen Tien Thoa, Head of the Price Management Department under the Ministry of Finance, said this is the second rise in petroleum prices so far this year, prompted by traders\' worries about losses.
The first increase came on February 24.
The adjustments are part of a larger move towards taking away the subsidy on petroleum products, and make sure that the price accurately reflects the global market, Thoa said. He added, however, that this latest price hike is only about 40% to 50% of what it should be. Other countries in the region sell 92 octane fuel for VND3,000 to VND5,000 more than Vietnam.
The CPI rise for March, 2.2%, set a 34-month record, bringing the total percentage for the first quarter up to 6.12%
Anti-inflation policies begin to have an impact
Also at the meeting, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Minister and Chairman of the Government Office, said, the Government’s Resolution 11 on anti-inflation and marcro-economic stabilisation measures have been showing good results after a month.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) had taken some measures to control the currency market, in order to prevent dollarisation. According to SBV Governor Nguyen Van Giau, Vietnam’s credit growth is estimated to have been below 5% in the first three months of this year.
The SBV is revising regulations on illegal foreign currency trading activities in the unofficial market. It is also finalizing a new decree on gold trading activities for submission to the Government. The decree is expected to be issued in the second quarter.
In the first quarter of this year, Vietnam’s economy grew by 5.43%, with 14.2% growth in the industrial sector and 3.5% in the agricultural sector.
Total exports have been estimated at USD19.2 billion, 33.7% higher than last year, surpassing the National Assembly’s target by three times.
Foreign investors have disbursed USD2.54 billion between January and March, up 1.6% against the same period last year.
