Inflation rose 4.27% in the first 11 months.

The increase in the consumer price index (CPI) in November 2023 by 0.25% compared to the previous month was mainly due to several localities implementing price increases for medical services according to Circular No. 22/2023/TT-BYT, tuition fees increased according to Decree No. 81/2021/ND-CP, and domestic rice prices continued to rise in line with export prices. Compared to December 2022, the CPI in November increased by 3.46%, and compared to the same period last year, it increased by 3.45%.

On average, the CPI for the first 11 months of 2023 increased by 3.22% compared to the same period of the previous year. Within the 0.25% increase in the CPI in November 2023 compared to the previous month, 8 groups of goods and services saw price increases, while 2 groups experienced price decreases. The household equipment and appliances group remained unchanged.

CPI growth/decrease rate in November 2023 compared to the previous month. Photo: General Statistics Office.

Specifically, eight groups of goods and services saw price increases: The highest increase was in the medicine and medical services group at 2.9%. The education group increased by 0.38%. The other goods and services group increased by 0.32%. The clothing, hats, and footwear group increased by 0.2% due to rising labor costs and increased demand for winter clothing.

The beverages and tobacco group increased by 0.19%, mainly due to the appreciation of the USD exchange rate. The food and catering services group increased by 0.1%. The culture, entertainment, and tourism group increased by 0.09%. The housing and construction materials group increased by 0.05%.

Two groups of goods and services saw a decrease in price index: Transportation decreased by 0.01%, and postal and telecommunications services decreased by 0.11% due to lower prices of older generation mobile phones.

According to the General Statistics Office, core inflation in November 2023 increased by 0.16% compared to the previous month and by 3.15% compared to the same period last year. On average for the first 11 months of 2023, core inflation increased by 4.27% compared to the same period in 2022, higher than the overall average CPI increase (3.22%).

The main reason is that the average domestic gasoline and diesel prices in the first 11 months of 2023 decreased by 12.12% compared to the same period last year, and gas prices decreased by 7.5%, which restrained the rate of increase in the CPI, but these items are excluded from the list of goods used to calculate core inflation.

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