Trade: Vietnam Purchasing Power to Grow 12% This Year.

(From Vietnam News Briefs)

The purchasing power of Vietnamese people this year is expected to reach VND3.43 million ($224) per capita, or VND290,000 ($18.9) per month, up 12% compared with the previous year, according to the Ministry of Trade.

The purchasing power, however, is not distributed evenly among provinces. Ho Chi Minh City alone accounts for 26% of the country's total purchasing power and the eight biggest cities and provinces account for more than 50% while the remaining 53 provinces, where most farmers live, have less than 50% of purchasing power, or less than VND100,000 ($6.5) per month per person.

In remote mountainous areas, people …