The July consumer price index (CPI) in Ho Chi Minh City picked up 0.61% from last month, according to the municipal Statistics Office.

Month-on-month price hikes were seen in eight of the 11 groups of main consumer goods and services, namely food and restaurant services (0.16%); garment, headwear and footwear (0.42%); housing, electricity, water, fuel and construction materials (0.43%); household appliances (0.09%); transport (4.59%); education (0.08%); culture, entertainment and tourism (0.02%); and other goods and services (0.11%).

While the group of beverages and cigarettes recorded a price decline of 0.05%, prices of medicine and healthcare services, along with postal and telecoms services, stayed unchanged compared to the previous month.

As a result, the July CPI fell 0.13% from last December but rose 2.62% from a year earlier. The seven-month index grew 3.36% from the same period of 2019, the Statistics Office said.