HÀ NỘI — Soaring domestic gas prices, riding a global fuel rally, alongside steeper costs for dining-out services and construction materials drove Việt Nam’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) up 0.84 per cent in April from the previous month, the Finance Ministry’s National Statistics Office has reported.

The CPI in April advanced 3.31 per cent compared to December 2025 and 5.46 per cent from a year earlier. For the first four months of 2026, the index climbed 3.99 per cent against the same period last year, with core inflation growing 3.89 per cent.

Month-on-month, the April CPI gained 0.84 per cent, with urban areas up 0.83 per cent and rural areas seeing a 0.86 per cent bump. Ten of the 11 main goods and services groups became more expensive, while only transportation managed to buck the trend and dip.

The NSO flagged key inflation drivers for the January-April period. Housing and construction materials prices jumped 6.25 per cent year-on-year, contributing 1.42 percentage points to the overall CPI. Rental housing costs climbed 6.47 per cent on higher maintenance and operating expenses, while home maintenance materials surged 13.52 per cent amid rising construction input costs and robust demand for construction and repairs. Household electricity prices rose 5.53 per cent following stronger consumption and an adjustment to average retail electricity rates effective on May 10, 2025.

Food and catering services prices crept up 4.71 per cent, piling on 1.69 percentage points to the CPI. Pork prices gained 6.07 per cent, adding 0.26 percentage points, as holiday supply ran thin and livestock production costs stayed high. Poultry prices edged up 4.6 per cent, while eating out got 6.12 per cent pricier as restaurants passed along higher input and service costs.

Education costs rose 3.25 per cent, contributing 0.19 percentage points to the CPI, as some private and vocational establishments adjusted tuition fees for the 2025–26 academic year. Beverages and tobacco prices went up 3.15 per cent, adding 0.06 percentage points, while household equipment and appliances gained 2.38 per cent, contributing 0.12 percentage points.

Meanwhile, culture, entertainment and tourism prices climbed 2.05 per cent, and apparel, headwear and footwear rose 1.79 per cent, together adding 0.06 percentage points to the CPI. Transportation prices advanced 3.48 per cent, contributing 0.35 percentage points, fueled primarily by a 5.16 per cent increase in fuel costs.

Offsetting some pressure, information and communications prices slipped 0.09 per cent over the four-month period, weighed down by cheaper technology devices amid abundant supply and intensifying competition among distributors.

Domestically, the gold price index tumbled 6.71 per cent in April from the prior month, mirroring businesses marking down prices to track global moves. It remained up 54.24 per cent year-on-year and 10.83 per cent compared to December 2025. Gold prices skyrocketed 75.13 per cent in the first four months of 2026.

The greenback fetched around 26,360 Việt Nam đồng on the free market. The US dollar price index inched up 0.17 per cent in April from the previous month, buoyed by stronger domestic demand for foreign currency. It rose 1.44 per cent year-on-year but slipped 0.31 per cent against December 2025. Through the first four months, the US dollar index ticked up 2.29 per cent.

Core inflation in April hiked 0.88 per cent month-on-month and 4.66 per cent year-on-year. In the first four months, it rose 3.89 per cent, trailing the headline CPI gain of 3.99 per cent, as swings in fuel, gas, and food prices, stripped out of core inflation calculations, drove the broader index higher. — VNA/VNS