The prices of goods and services in April surged 0.2 percent against the previous month and three percent over December 2005, announced the General Statistics Office.

Household furniture and home appliances topped the list with an increase of 0.4 percent.

Charges for foods and footwear soared 0.2 percent while drinks, cigarettes, transport fares and postal services were up 0.1 percent.

The consumer index of the central port city of Da Nang recorded the highest growth of 0.7 percent compared to other localities, followed by Ho Chi Minh City with 0.5 percent. 

The General Statistics Office also reported an increase of 4.8 percent in domestic gold prices over last month and 16.9 percent over December 2005.

The value of the US dollar relative to the Vietnamese dong showed a slight increase of 0.1 percent.