Hanoi's consumer price index up 0.66% in September

The nine-month CPI, calculated from a basket of consumer goods and services, inched up 4.88% from the same period last year, it added. A basket of goods is a collection of items that represent consumer spending patterns. For example, the CPI is a common measure of inflation, and measures the price change over time for a basket of goods and services.

In September, nine of the 11 categories of goods and services saw price hikes. Food and catering services was the most affected group which rose by 1.66%, contributing to a 0.52% increase in the overall CPI due to the impact of Typhoon Yagi. This natural disaster drove food prices up by 2.04%.

Educational services expanded by 2.44% as students at all levels returned to school, leading to increased expenses for educational activities.

Prices of housing, electricity, water, fuel and construction materials group were up by 0.88% due to high demand for housing rental of university students.

Other commodities that experienced slight increases include beverages and cigarettes (0.16 %), culture, entertainment and tourism (0.1%), medicine and health services, garment, head wear, and footwear (0.03%).

Two groups of commodities which saw prices retreat slightly were transport (2.31%) and post and telecom services (0.19%).

The gold price index went up 1.94% month on month while the US dollar price index dropped by 1.89% from the previous month.