The GSO said the figure for the first four months of the year rose by 0.8 percent compared to the same period last year.
The price bracket saw the sharpest rise in transportation (2.47percent); followed by housing and building materials (0.84 percent);culture, entertainment and tourism (0.32 percent); home appliances (0.16percent); and education (0.01 percent).
Meanwhile,price decreases were seen in food and restaurants (0.42 percent),beverage and tobacco (0.01 percent) and telecommunications (0.09percent).
The GSO said CPI growth was curbed by the drop in foodprice, triggered by an abundant supply yet dwindling demand after theTet holiday. In addition, steady CPI in April was spurred by a fall indomestic gas prices.
The price of gold decreased as the dollarstrengthened. The inter-bank average exchange rate, quoted by the StateBank of Vietnam (SBV) on April 15, was 21,458 VND/USD. Meanwhile, therate in free markets stood at 21,620 VND/USD, up 0.74 percent fromMarch.
According to the GSO, inflation rose 0.07 percent against March and 2.2 percent from the same period last year.
TheGSO highlighted that the May CPI is likely to continue to rise due tothe impact of electricity price adjustments and increasing demand fortourism, food and public transportation during the upcoming long holidaycelebrating the Southern Liberation and National Reunification andInternational Labour Day.-VNA