The consumer price index (CPI) inched up 0.06% in January against December last year, and down 0.97% year-on-year, according to the General Statistics Office of Vietnam (GSO).

Head of the GSO’s Price Statistics Department Do Thi Ngoc said the core inflation (CPI excluding food items, energy products and commodities under the State management like medical and educational services) in January rose by 0.49% year-on-year. This is the lowest increase in January in the past five years, she stressed.

The GSO said among 9 groups of products and services witnessing higher prices in the reviewed period, the group of transportation had the highest price hike of 2.29%, followed by the groups of restaurant and catering services (0.64%), garment, hat and footwear (0.44%), and education services (0.33%), beverage and tobacco (0.32%), and other goods and services (0.24%).

Meanwhile, two groups saw their prices decrease, including house and construction materials (down 2.31%) and post and telecommunication service (0.1%).

The GSO said the rise in January’s CPI was fueled by a surge in the demand for goods to prepare for the Lunar New Year (Tet) festival, high prices of foods and foodstuff, and increase in gas prices to keep up with swings in the global market.

The gold price picked up 2.17% month-on-month in January, while the price of the US dollar decreased 0.16%.