Vietnam's consumer price index rose 1.98 per cent from November to December to the highest level in 22 months, the government said Friday, according to dpa, The General Statistics Office said the figures brought the overall inflation rate this year to 11.8 per cent, overstepping the government's target to contain price rises to under 8 per cent this year. Prices for school products rose nearly 20 per cent this year, the biggest rise among the basket of representative goods and services measured. Food rose 16.1 per cent while housing and construction materials were up 15.7 per cent. Analysts have warned that Vietnam risks a serious inflationary spiral because of a credit expansion of 37 per cent in 2009. The rise was driven largely by government stimulus spending intended to counteract the global economic slowdown. In a bid to counter double-digit inflation, the government has imposed price controls on key commodities like electricity, coal for power production, cement, fertilizer and other goods, but inflation has continued to rise.
