The Head of the Price Management Department under the Finance Ministry, Nguyen Tien Thoa, attributed the small variation of prices on the market to a series of efforts taken by functional agencies. They included.

First, the early implementation of the Prime Minister’s instruction on stabilizing the market during Tet.

Second, the active promotion of production and goods supply. Both major economic groups and provincial enterprises have joined hands to put an ample amount of goods into the market. In many provinces and cities, authorities have allocated local budget reserves to assist enterprises with a large market share to step up production and prepare sufficient goods for people.

Third, the State Bank of Vietnam has reduced the prime interest rate from 8.5 percent to just seven percent, creating conditions for commercial banks to lower their lending interest rates to about 10.5 percent, which has given enterprises better access to capital.

Fourth, the Ministry of Finance has continued to cut import taxes on petrol and reduced corporate income taxes, and has tried to stabilize the prices of many other essential goods such as oil, electricity and coal.

Finally, efforts to check and control the market, and combat smuggling and trade and tax fraud have also been accelerated. Inspection teams have been set up in many cities and provinces to prevent subsidized enterprises from raising their product prices. (VOV)