By Bui Minh Long

    HANOI, June 22 (Xinhua) -- "Many people guess that retail prices of petroleum products will increase again after this month. If so, I will abandon my motorbike and go to work by bus," said Hoang Hoa, a 36-year-old worker of the Thang Long Garment Company in Vietnam's capital Hanoi.

    Vietnam, adjusting retail prices of petroleum products five times, including three hikes and two decreases last year, has so far this year raised the prices once. On Feb. 25, the price of one liter of A92 petroleum, most commonly used by motorbike drivers in the country, rose by 1,500 Vietnamese dong (VND) (9.4 U.S. cents) to 14,500 VND (90.6 cents).

    "After several price hikes, now my motorbike 'drinks' additional nearly 100,000 VND (around six dollars) worth of petroleum each month. Media reports have it that after this month, the petroleum price will be increased by 700 VND (4.4 cents) per liter to 15,200 VND (95 cents). Heavens! Help! Prices of everything are going up, but my salary isn't," Hoa said.

    Her fear about the price hike is not groundless. The Vietnamese government has instructed relevant agencies and sectors to ensure sufficient supply of petroleum products nationwide in all circumstances, and not to increase their retail prices at least until the end of June. How about after June?

    The question leaves unanswered with different responses. Unlike the garment worker, many other local people, especially white-collar workers, said the past and future price hikes do not affect their life too much.

    "Motorbike is the most common means of transport in Vietnam. It's very convenient. It can take you to every corner of a street or road. If there is a traffic jam, a bus will be stuck in the crowd for a long time, but a motorbike can move more flexibly. Therefore, we will use our motorbikes, regardless fluctuations of petroleum prices," said Bui Van Lan, a sewing-thread trader from the city's Thanh Tri district.

    The 56-year-old trader has an extended family with nine adults and two infants, possessing a total of nine motorbikes. "Depending on the frequency of motorbike use and the vehicle's type, each of our family member spends 200,000-400,000 VND (12.5-25 dollars) on petroleum a month," he said, noting that the monthly expenditure was some 100,000-300,000 VND (6.3-18.8 dollars) last year.

    "My husband and I are reporters, so we travel more than other family members. I use a motor-scooter, so it consumes more petroleum than my husband's gear motorbike. Every month, petroleum costs us around 800,000 VND (50 dollars), or one-tenth of our total monthly expense," said Nguyen Thi Hao, Lan's daughter-in-law.

    Last year, Hao and her husband spent about 600,000 VND (37.5 dollars) on petroleum a month. According to Hao, reporter of Vietnam Post newspaper, she and her husband have to do extra work to compensate for hikes in petroleum products and many other items, including food, foodstuffs and garments.

    "At night, I often write book or film reviews for TV and magazines. My husband joins hands with his friends in translating or writing books sometimes. In the time of inflation, many people, both blue-collar and white-collar workers, have to do extra work to make ends meet," said the 31-year-old reporter.

    To cope with unfavorable changes to petroleum products, Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed the government to raise the rate of national petroleum and oil reserve from current five days to 10 days in late 2008, and apply a flexible usage mechanism, under which part of petroleum and oil products in national reserve can be exported when the world prices increase sharply, and Vietnam will import the items when the prices drop. The country also plans to establish a fund designated to stabilize prices of petroleum products in the domestic market in the future.

    Mainly due to fluctuations in world oil prices, Vietnam adjusted its retail prices of petroleum products three times, including two hikes and one decrease in 2005; four times (two up and two down) in 2006, and five times (three up and two down) in 2007.

    Vietnam spent nearly 4.9 billion dollars importing 5.8 million tons of petroleum products in the first five months of this year, up 68.7 percent in value and 6.2 percent in volume against the same period of last year, according to the country's General Statistics Office.

    To reduce reliance on petroleum imports, Vietnam, in late 2005, started the construction of its first oil refinery with an annual refining capacity of 6.5 million tons in central Quang Ngai province. The refinery is scheduled to become operational in February 2009.