Shoppers at a supermarket in Hai Bà Trưng District in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The General Statistics Office (GSO) on Monday announced that the May consumer price index (CPI) increased by 0.01 per cent month-on-month mostly due to increases in prices of food, electricity, and water.

The May CPI increased by 0.4 per cent compared to December 2022 and 2.43 per cent from the same period last year.

The average CPI of the first five months of this year rose by 3.55 per cent over the same period last year.

The year-on-year rise in CPI from the beginning of this year tends to slow down gradually with 4.89 per cent in January, 4.31 per cent in February, 3.35 per cent in March, 2.81 per cent in April, and 2.43 per cent in May, the GSO pointed out.

Factors that pushed the CPI up in the first five months of this year include the increased prices of education, housing and construction materials, culture/entertainment, and tourism because of increasing demand after the COVID-19 pandemic was put under control.

In addition, prices of food items hiked by 3.8 per cent, mainly due to higher consumer demand during holidays and festivals.

The price of household electricity in May increased by 2.62 per cent compared to the previous month, and the price of household water increased by 2.19 per cent due to hot weather which led to increased electricity and water consumption.

During May, gas increased by 0.31 per cent compared to the previous month, as starting from May 1, 2023, domestic prices were adjusted to increase by VNĐ2,000 per 12 kg cylinder following a US$5 per tonne increase in global gas prices (from $550 per tonne to $555 per tonne).

The transportation group index in May 2023 decreased by 2.98 per cent compared to the previous month, resulting in a 0.29 percentage point decrease in the overall CPI. Domestic gasoline prices decreased by 7.83 per cent compared to the previous month, contributing to a 0.28 percentage point decrease in the overall CPI.

Transportation vehicles decreased by 0.07 per cent, including a 0.07 per cent decrease in the prices of new cars, a 0.02 per cent decrease in the prices of motorcycles, and a 0.48 per cent decrease in the prices of used cars. This was primarily driven by a decrease in consumer demand, while a large inventory of vehicles led businesses to lower prices.

Passenger transportation prices by road increased by 0.06 per cent compared to the previous month, railway transportation prices increased by 2.53 per cent, and air transportation prices increased by 0.45 per cent. This was due to increased travel demand during the holiday period.

Education index decreased by 0.1 per cent compared to the previous month, resulting in a 0.01 percentage point decrease in the overall CPI with the main factor being Resolution No. 165/NQ-CP issued on December 20, 2022, which maintains the same tuition fees for the 2022-23 academic year as the previous year.

The culture, entertainment, and tourism index increased by 0.24 per cent compared to the previous month. This was driven by a 0.67 per cent increase in the prices of package tour services and a 0.38 per cent increase in the prices of guesthouses and hotels due to the holiday period.

Meanwhile, factors that pulled the CPI down during the period included the falling prices of fuels and postal and telecommunications products.

According to the General Statistics Office, core inflation in May increased by 0.27 per cent over the previous month and by 4.54 per cent over the same period last year. The average core inflation of the first five months of this year rose by 4.83 per cent year-on-year, higher than the CPI growth rate (3.55 per cent)

The main reason for this is the average decrease in domestic fuel prices of 15.27 per cent in the first five months of 2023 compared to the same period last year, and the decrease in gas prices by 8.51 per cent. These factors contribute to a slowing down the pace of CPI increase but are excluded from the core inflation calculation. — VNS