Deputy PM warns against ‘double’ inflation
HAØ NOÄI Deputy Prime Minister Vöông Ñình Hueä has asked the State Bank of Vieät Nam (SBV) to actively and proactively direct monetary policy; closely follow fiscal and macro-policies to control inflation; and prevent double inflation caused by higher foreign exchange rates and global fuel prices.
Hueä, who is also head of the Governments Steering Committee on Price Direction, made the announcement during a meeting in Haø Noäi yesterday to review first-half performance and outline tasks for the remaining months of this year.
He ordered the Ministry of Transport to reconsider managing air fares and add the adjustment of aviation and bus prices into its price control plan.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has been asked make a report on managing pork prices and strive to reduce them.
Ministries, agencies, and localities must closely follow price management scenarios between now and the years end and continue with biddings at the Ministry of Health and Vieät Nam Social Security (VSS) to cut medicine and medical equipment prices.
The Ministry of Health and VSS will review the adjustment of healthcare service prices in the near future under the watch of the Ministry of Finance.
As tuition fees will rise 0.07 per cent in September, prices of public services need to be thoroughly considered.
Hueä agreed with a plan to enhance the use of price stabilisation funds to reduce petrol prices. The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) was assigned to build a scheme to reduce taxes on bio-fuel.
Head of the Ministry of Finances Price Management Department Nguyenã Anh Tuaná said in order to counter possible inflation, the Government had requested that power prices are not hiked this year, stabilising goods priced by the State in June as well as others with possible higher prices.
SBV Vice Governor Nguyeãn Thò Hoàng said the basic interest rate had stayed low at 1.35 per cent. In the first half of this year, credit growth hit 7.88 per cent compared to 9.06 per cent during the same period last year. The country ran a trade surplus of US$2.7 billion.
Representatives from ministries and agencies proposed solutions for important goods impacting inflation between now and the years end such as pork, petrol, liquefied natural gas, education, healthcare, transportation, and telecommunications.
The Ministry of Finances Price Management Department and the MoITs General Statistics Office devised two scenarios on price management to ensure that inflation will stay below 4 per cent. VNS