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• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79T00826A001600010046-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 21
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 5, 2007
• Sequence Number: 46
• Publication Date: February 6, 1967
• Content Type: IR

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# Secret
DIRECTORATE OF
INTELLIGENCE
Intelligence Report
The Situation in South Vietnam
(Weekly
State Dept. review
completed
USAID review
completed
ARMY review(s)
completed.
Secret
149
6 February 1967
No. 0336/67
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Secret
WARNING~
This document''' contains information affecting the national defense of the
United States, within the meaning of Title 18, sections 793 and 794, of the
US Code, as amended. Its transmission or revelation of its contents to or
receipt by an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
GROUP I
EXCLUDED FROM AUTOMATIC
DOWNGRADING AND
DECLASSIFICATION
Secret
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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Directorate of Intelligence
THE SITUATION IN SOUTH VIETNAM
(30 January - 5 February 1967)
Preliminary electioneering; Con-
stituent Assembly developments:
oca a ec ion sc e -
u e; Mon agnard developments;
students restive at Saigon Univer-
~ity School of Medicine.
Continued success in pacification
in Vinh Binh Province; Impact of
elections on Revolutionary Develop-
ment; Resettlement plans for people
displaced by CEDAR FALLS; Develop-
ments in the Chieu Hoi program;
Chieu Hoi statistics; Chieu Hoi
summary for 1966.
Prices, Currency and gold; Rice situ-
ation; Recent developments in pork
marketing; New secretary general for
economy and finance; Minister
Thuan's views on the Saigon port.
ANNEX: Weekly Retail Prices in Saigon (table)
Saigon Free Market Gold and Currency Prices (graph)
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Continuing preliminary campaigning
for the presidency by both Premier Ky and
Chief of State Thieu is highlighting cur-
rent political developments.
The Constituent Assembly is now work-
ing on the future government's legislative
branch, and will soon begin to discuss as-
pects of legislative authority. There
are indications that the government and the
assembly have reached an agreement on con-
troversial aspects of the draft constitution
dealing with the legislature.
Although there are some hopeful signs,
relations between the government and mon-
tagnards in the central highlands have not
yet been firmly settled.
Preliminary Electioneering
1. Local interest in the future presidential
election continues to grow, with both Chief of State
Thieu and Premier Ky indulging in preliminary cam-
paigning. General Thieu, following his publicized
tour of the delta provinces the previous week, held
a major reception for the press in Saigon on 30 Jan-
uary. Ky, apparently in part to offset Thieu's
barnstorming, flew to the delta on 3 February to
take part in religious ceremonies of the Hoa Hao sect.
Both men spoke liberally about such potential campaign
issues as peace, anti-corruption, and land reform,
with Thieu holding out the prospect that the Vietnam-
ese army's new pacification role would shorten the
war and Ky declaring that presidential elections
could be advanced by some three months to early sum-
mer.
2. Although both generals publicly profess a
preference for a military career, they appear clearly
to be bidding to become the presidential candidate of
the military. The subject of a single military can-
didate was tentatively broached between them a few
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weeks ago, but a final decision reportedly was put
off until after the new constitution is promulgated
about April. Continued preliminary campaigning,
however, could force an earlier confrontation to
3. Meanwhile, retired General Tran Van Don,
frequently mentioned as a possible "civilian" can-
didate, told an embassy officer last week that he
would not run and might back Ky, adding that he
would be a fool to compete against the resources of
the present military leaders. The embassy, convinced
of Don's political ambitions, speculates that he may
now be thinking of throwing his support to Ky in re-
turn for a high government appointment. The bulk of
southerners, toward whom Don would normally look for
support, are, however, leaning strongly toward for-
mer premier Tran Van Huong as a civilian candidate.
Catholic sentiment is presently divided along re-
gional lines between Huong and Ky, with some north-
ern refugee Catholics talking of a slate which could
include both men in some combination of president
and premier.
Constituent Assembly Developments
4. The Constituent Assembly last week began
work on the future government's legislative branch,
and approved general provisions on the organization
and election of a bicameral legislature. Deputies in
the lower house, which will range in size from 100 to
200 members, will be elected from separate constitu-
encies which are no larger than provinces, will serve
four-year terms, and may be re-elected. The upper
house will have between 30 and 60 members elected at
large throughout the country on a list basis rather
than on an individual basis.
5. Meanwhile, Chief of State Thieu sent a formal
letter to assembly president Phan Khac Suu on 28 Jan-
uary outlining Directorate suggestions for the constitu-
tion. Many of the Directorate's proposals concerned
greater restrictions on the authority of the legisla-
ture than now outlined in the assembly's working draft.
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The articles dealing with the legislature's authority
have not yet been discussed by the entire assembly.
6. At the same time, however, public criticism
of the assembly's draft, apparently inspired by gov-
ernment leaders, is continuing. On 29 January, a
Vietnamese youth group generally known to be sponsored
by Premier Ky and Police Director Loan held a seminar
at which criticism of the assembly's draft echoed that
which has been made by military leaders. The seminar
received wide publicity in the government-controlled
Vietnamese press.
7. Such efforts by the military leaders to bring
contrived public pressure on the assembly is an ir-
ritant to many assemblymen, especially in view of their
earlier agreement with Directorate members to work out
differences over the constitution in private. The
public campaign against the assembly's draft apparently
has not caused serious resentment in the assembly thus
far, and there are indications that the government and
the assembly have now reached an agreement on contro-
versial aspects of the draft dealing with the legisla-
ture.
Local Election Schedule
9. In accordance with a government decree on
local administrative reform promulgated in late 1966,
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local elections for village councils and hamlet
chiefs have now been scheduled for this April,
May, and June. The timing of these elections has
been phased so that in each province no more than
30 percent of the elections in villages and ham-
lets under government control will be held at the
same time. Presumably, the advantage in phased
elections is that security forces can be concen-
trated to protect the elections from Viet Cong
harassment. In most other respects, election reg-
ulations will resemble those for the Constituent
Assembly last September.
Montagnard Developments
10. Y Bham Enoul, leader of the dissident
tribal autonomy movement FULRO, failed to attend a
scheduled meeting with US and GVN representatives
on 28 January. Y Bham, who has been in hiding in
Cambodia, recently had requested assistance in
seeking political asylum in Thailand, and the meet-
ing on 28 January had been arranged for this purpose.
It is not clear whether Y Bham deliberately passed
up the meeting, or whether his couriers failed to
reach him in time to confirm the time and place of
the meeting.
11. News of the prospective meeting between Y
Bham and US and GVN officials apparently caused a
favorable reaction among montagnards in the Ban Me
Thuot area of Darlac Province. They evidently in-
terpreted the government's willingness to attend
such a meeting as another indication of the govern-
ment's recent responsiveness towards montagnard af-
fairs. The outcome of another scheduled return of
FULRO members to government control, scheduled to
take place this week, should provide further positive
indications.
12. Meanwhile, there have been some indications
of restiveness among montagnards in northern Kontum
Province, where they have normally been quiet. Mon-
tagnard sources attribute this unrest to dissatis-
faction with government policies there, especially
the government's unwillingness or inability to pro-
tect the montagnards against Viet Cong harassment.
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Students Restive at Saigon University's School of
13. The public installation of a new five-man
governing committee appointed by the government for
Saigon University's School of Medicine took place on
30 January with an estimated 500 troops on guard
against possible disruptive efforts by students. The
ceremony had been postponed on two earlier occasions
by student opposition. Students at the ceremony on
30 January carried banners protesting government in-
terference in university affairs, but there was no
violence.
14. The origins of unrest among the medical
students extend at least as far back as last spring,
when the students, with faculty encouragement, spear-
headed pro-"struggle" demonstrations. More recently
medical students led some demonstrations in November
against French, American, or other foreign instruc-
tion on the grounds that it was detrimental to Viet-
namese culture. In mid-January, Premier Ky decided
to replace the dean and four professors at the school,
and to establish closer government supervision over
it.
15. US officials in Saigon are unsure what, if
any, outside political forces are behind recent
student agitation and restiveness. It is possible
that some of the student leaders have connections
with Tri Quang's militant Buddhists, or with dissident
southerners. Neither is it yet clear if the student
agitation will spread to other schools in the univer-
sity. Student presidents at ten of the 14 schools and
faculties affiliated with the university reportedly
signed a petition denouncing government infringement
of the university's sovereignty, and scheduled a meet-
ing on 31 January to decide what action to take. Re-
sults of this meeting have not been reported, but ap-
parently no immediate major action was taken by the
students.
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Continued successes are being re-
ported in pacification efforts in Vinh Binh
Province. The anticipated use of Revolu-
tionary Development (RD) Cadre in the 1967
election campaigns is expected to have no
detrimental effect on over-all RD efforts,
providing their use is not for a prolonged
period. Resettlement of villagers displaced
by Operation CEDAR FALLS is proceeding
smoothly. Weaknesses noted in the Chieu
Hoi program relating particularly to the re-
habilitation of ralliers in the Chieu Hoi
centers and to a follow-up on their activi-
ties after release remain as yet unsolved.
Some 592 Viet Cong returned to government
control in the period 15 to 21 January, and
preliminary figures indicate 823 rallied in
the period 22 to 28 January. The initial
28-day total is 2,272 Chieu Hoi. In 1966,
there were 20,242 ralliers; 64 percent of
these were military. A preliminary survey
indicates about one percent were North Viet-
namese troops.
.Continued-Success in Pacification
1. Latest figures show that Revolutionary Develop-
ment Cadre (RDC) Teams and People's Action Teams (PATs)
in Vinh Binh Province have secured a total of 27 hamlets,
principally in Tieu Can District. Their success appears
contagious, and, along with improved security, the econ-
omy of the area is definitely improving. With assistance
from RD cadre one hamlet with a population of only 1,800
built eight miles of inter-hamlet road. The province
chief, impressed with the local initiative, has directed
that all major inter-hamlet roads built on local initia-
tive be hard-surfaced. This will facilitate and stimu-
late additional economic growth in the area.
2. Another hamlet, which had paid one million
piasters in Viet Cong taxes in 1965 and early 1966 was
pacified during 1966 and paid no taxes to the enemy
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during the remainder of the year. This hamlet was able
to defend its rice crop successfully, and received a tax
write-off from the GVN to promote its local economy.
This hamlet, with three RD teams and 60 hamlet defenders,
was attacked at night during the week of 20 January 1967
by a Viet Cong battalion. The hamlet, under attack for
five hours, suffered one killed and 11 wounded compared
with 60 Viet Cong confirmed killed. The defenders were
-supported throughout the night by armed aircraft. MACV
advisers have stated that the teams and the hamlet
residents conducted a brilliant defense--well coordi-
nated with air and artillery support--and generally
displayed discipline and spirit.
3. Two village areas of Tieu Can District are
now 95 percent pacified. Elections have been held in
all hamlets, village elections are pending, and farm
cooperatives and non-funded self-help schools are being
established. An ex-Viet Cong, who rallied under the
Chieu Hoi program, is teaching in one of4'the hamlet
schools.
Impact of Elections on Revolu-
tionary`.Development
4. In view of the major contribution of the Min-
istry of Revolutionary Development (MRD) in mobilizing
support for the Constituent Assembly elections in Sep-
tember 1966, it is assumed that the MRD will be active
in.the presidential and other elections planned for 1967.
The three to four weeks devoted to the 1966 election
resulted in no appreciable diversion of assets from RD
efforts. Provided that the election preparations in
1967 are not greatly prolonged, they are not expected to
cause detriment to the RD effort this year,
Resettlement Plans for People
Displaced by CEDAR FALLS
5. As many as 8,000 people may have been displaced
by Operation CEDAR FALLS, the recently concluded allied
action against a Viet Cong sanctuary north of Saigon. The
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refugee camp at Phu Cuong--the capital of Binh Duong
Province--is caring for approximately 6,100 of these
persons or about 1,430 family units. Present plans call
for resettlement of the refugees by 15 April, although
the final date depends on the amount of time required
by ARVN/US engineers to clear homesites and construct
new living quarters.
6. The majority of the families--1,300--will be
resettled in a new community to be established at Binh
Hoa Village, eight miles southeast of Phu Cuong. The
new community will comprise 125 acres and will provide
a school, market, and wells. Each family will have a
housing plot apprQximately 10 by 25 yards and a new
home costing approximately 11,000 piasters. The cost
of the houses will be borne in part by the Special
Commission for Refugees (5,000 piasters) and, another
6,000 piasters may be obtained from the Ministry of
Social Welfare. If the Welfare ministry will not help
fund the project, the remaining costs may be assumed by
USAID, which is now supplying roofing and cement. The
first 50 families are to be resettled after Tet, the
Lunar New Year.
7. The remainder of the refugees--100 families of
rubber workers--will be resettled in Binh Long Province
under arrangements to be made by the province chiefs
of Binh Duong and Binh Long. A number of other people,
especially craftsmen, have indicated a preference to
live in Ben Cat town in northern Binh Duong; they prob-
ably will be allowed to do so.
8. The land around the,.principal settlement,
Binh Hoa, is most suitable for produce farming, Since
the agricultural experience of the refugees is in rice
cropping, classes are being given in the refugee center
on the new method of farming. In addition to allied
medical teams circulating in the refugee camp, a school
has been established and most of the children are receiv-
ing their first formal education in two years. About
400 of the men and women are producing cinder blocks for
the construction of their new homes, and are receiving
pay in the form of additional foodstuffs.
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Developments in the Chieu Hoi Program
9. Since all provinces now have a third country
national (Filipino) as Chieu Hoi adviser, the US mission
is initiating independent reporting on the number of ral-
liers. This should eliminate the traditional time lag
in the reporting by the Minisry of Information and Chieu
Hoi and should permit better analysis of factors bearing
on the returnee rate. As a further refinement, the number
of North Vietnamese defectors and the number of ralliers
from the Viet Cong Main Force (subordinate to a VC region
or to the Central Office for South Vietnam--COSVN) will
be reported separately.
10. During November 1966, 18 provinces improved the
physical layout of their Chieu Hoi centers, and 19 carried
on some form, of vocational or literary training. The
latter is encouraging since this training was undertaken
on local initiative and without national funds. Although
16 provinces reported programs for resettlement of ralliers
in Chieu Hoi hamlets, effective resettlement is by and
large lagging.
11. A recent increase in the number of ralliers, a
trend begun in September 1966, has been credited to in-
tense military operations by allied forces, the discomfort
of Viet Cong living conditions, disillusionment with Viet
Cong promises, and an increasingly effective allied psy-
chological operations program.
12. Much remains to be done, however, to improve
the program while the Hoi Chanh is in the Chieu Hoi center,
especially in such areas as effective use of the rallier's
time, literacy and vocational training, and medical care.
Since the majority of returnees have earned their liveli-
hood through agriculture, some thought is being given to
farming land around the centers. There is a need for
ralliers to be issued ID cards prior to leaving the center
since, without them, employment is difficult, if not im-
possible, in GVN-controlled areas.
13. Another problem, yet unsolved, is to determine
what happens to ralliers after they leave the center.
Residents of Chieu Hoi hamlets can be easily accounted for,
but the overwhelming majority who settle elsewhere cannot
be. From an administrative standpoint, the simplest
solution may be to have ralliers report periodically to
the National Police. Those remiss in doing so might
suffer loss of "legal" status.
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14. This question of follow-up, a relatively new
feature of the Chieu Hoi program, is one to which in-
creasing attention must be paid if the program is to
maintain its plausibility. Surveys of attitudes among
Hoi Chanh indicate that a significant percentage of Viet
Cong desiring to rally do so only after a "wait and see"
period to discover what happened to others who preceded
them.
15. During the period 15-21 January, 592 persons
rallied to the government under the Chieu Hoi ("Open Arms")
program. In this period reports were not received from
11 provinces, including six major provinces of IV Corps.
A breakdown of Chieu Hoi returnees for this reporting
period follows:
I Corps
35
Military
307
II Corps
291
Political
201
III Corps
208
Other Elements
85
IV Corps
58
16. Preliminary figures for the period 22 to 28 Jan-
uary indicate that 823 Viet Cong rallied to the GVN. In-
cluded in these figures are 484 military, 257 political,
and 82 other Viet Cong elements. The preliminary total
for the first 28 days of January is 2,272.
Chieu Hoi Summary for 1966
17. In 1966, 20,242 Viet Cong rallied to GVN. A
breakdown of this figure lists 64 percent as "military,"
31 percent as "political," and five percent in such "other"
categories as civilian supporters. A survey conducted by
the Rand Corporation of 1,350 of these 1966 returnees
reveals the following breakdown:
NVA troops 1 percent
VC Main Force 6 percent
VC Local Force 7 percent
Armed Guerrilla 60 percent
Civilian 26 percent
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18. Because of the small number surveyed, it is
not possible to determine if, what appeared in an earlier
poll to be a changing trend (that a larger percent of
Viet Cong ralliers are from Main Force and Local Force
units), continues to be true. In the earlier Rand survey
of 6,000 defectors, from the period October 1965 to June
1966, the percentage of Main Force/Local Force ralliers
doubled from eight to 17 percent over the nine-month period.
With regard to the number of troops who bring in weapons,
a survey conducted among 3,000 military ralliers from
July 1965 to September 1966 revealed that ten percent of
Main Force soldiers and village guerrillas, and 15 per-
cent of Local Force soldiers and hamlet guerrillas rallied
with weapons.
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Prices of domestic and imported com-
modities in Saigon continued to rise dur-
ing the week ending 30 January. Free market
gold and currency prices, however, were
slightly lower. The rice situation con-
tinues to worsen, with rice prices up
about 30 percent during the past month.
Premier Ky has agreed to send a delega-
tion to Bangkok to purchase Thai rice,
The Saigon prefecturate has backed down
on its attempt to liberalize pork marketing.
Truong Thai Ton has been appointed secre-
tary general for economy and finance to co-
ordinate the activities of the five minis-
tries concerned with economic matters.
The US Embassy reports that Truong Van
Thuan, who was recently given over-all
responsibility for all of South Vietnam's
ports, appears to be off to a good start
in his new position.
Prices
1. The steady rise in Saigon retail prices con-
tinued during the week ending 30 January as these
prices rose another three percent. Low stocks and
anticipation of higher prices pushed rice prices up
for the fifth consecutive week. On 30 January the
price of the type of rice used by the working class
reached 2,100 piasters per 100 kilograms compared
with 1,650 piasters about a month ago. Although the
price of pork bellies held steady at last week's
price of 150 piasters per kilogram, the price of lean
pork rose to 250 piasters per kilogram, or 14 percent
above the previous week. Prices of beer, fish,
bananas, bread,, and onion shoots also were higher,
partly because of increased Tet demand. Sugar and
condensed milk prices declined, on the other hand,
as a result of increased distribution to dealers.
Nonfood prices were generally unchanged. (A table
of weekly retail prices in Saigon is included in the
Annex.)
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2. Prices of imported commodities also rose
about three percent. According to the USAID index
for selected US-financed imports, commodity prices
on 31 January were about 14 percent above a month
ago. The most significant change during the week
under review was a 20-percent increase in the price
of cement, caused by the current low level of stocks.
Currency and Gold
3. Free market currency and gold rates de-
clined. On 30 January the price of dollars was
174 piasters per dollar, or one piaster below the
previous week, whereas gold moved down two piasters
to 223 piasters per dollar. MPC (scrip) fell three
piasters to 112 piasters.per dollar in response to
a rumor of a change in series. (A graphic on monthly
and weekly free market gold and currency prices is
included in the Annex.)
Rice Situation
4. The rice situation continues to grow worse
with rice prices up about 30 percent during the past
month and rice stocks at very low levels. Because
repeated US efforts to activate the GVN bureaucracy;
to arrange for rice imports from Thailand have been
unsuccessful, Ambassador Lodge called on Premier Ky
on 28 January and urged him to send a high-level
delegation to Bangkok immediately to purchase Thai
rice before it is sold to other countries. Ky
agreed to send an official soon.
5. Just prior to the ambassador's meeting with
Ky, US officials discussed the rice stock crisis
with Secretary of Commerce An, who said that a GVN
delegation would be sent to Bangkok, possibly within
a week. An also reported that he had cabled Na-
tional Bank Governor Hanh, who is currently in
Washington, and had asked him to arrange for the
purchase of US rice--evidently 200,000 tons--on
commercial terms for delivery during July-October
when rice stocks may once again reach low levels.
6. Meanwhile, Assistance Secretary of Com-
merce Trong told US officials that he, Secretary An,
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and the director of the National Agricultural Credit
Office were about to go to the delta to purchase
rice, although they had no way of knowing how much
rice delta merchants have on hand. Trong said the
GVN delegation will be prepared to offer the going
market price of the day on which the purchase is
made. Consequently, the merchants will make a con-
siderable profit since prices have risen markedly
since the beginning of the season. Moreover, al-
though the GVN team intends to describe their trip
publicly as a familiarization trip in order to pre-
vent further hoarding and price increases, the real
purpose will quickly become obvious once GVN pur-
chasing begins. The US Embassy feels that this
trip is inadvisable because it could convince the
merchants that the GVN is desperate for rice and
result in more speculation and higher prices. Never-
theless, Secretary An still intends to make purchases
in the delta now rather than wait until stocks are
built up with Thai rice.
Recent Developments in Pork Marketing
7. On 23 January the Saigon prefecturate
abandoned the system of rationing pork to retailers
at an officially set price. Starting that day, re-
tailers were to make their own arrangements for
purchasing pork at prices to be agreed upon between
them and the suppliers. The purpose of this action
was to encourage larger deliveries of hogs to meet
increased demand during Tet. Immediately following
the announcement of this new system, however, there
was a rise in the price to retailers, who protested
the system and promptly boycotted the slaughterhouse.
8. As a result, the Saigon prefecturate has now
backed down on its attempt to liberalize pork mar-
keting. Rationing of officially priced pork to re-
tailers was resumed on 29 January and will last
through the end of Tet on 15 February. If the Min-
istry of Commerce agrees, however, the official
price of live hogs will be raised from 7,000 to
7,500 piasters per 100 kilograms of live hog and
official retail prices also will be increased by
seven percent. Pork retailers ended their boycott
upon being informed that the old official price
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would not be enforced as long as retailers charged
reasonable prices. Throughout the struggle between
the retailers and the prefecturate, hogs continued
to arrive at the slaughterhouse in good number.
New Secretary General for Economy and Finance
9. Premier Ky has announced the appointment
of Acting Secretary of Industry Truong Thai Ton to
the position of secretary general for economy and
finance. This position, which is essentially the
same as that formerly held by Au Truong Thanh, had
been abolished last November. Since that time it
has become obvious to Vietnamese officials that a
strong hand was needed to coordinate the activities
of the three separate economic ministries of fi-
nance, commerce, and industry.' In his new posi-
tion as the highest ranking GVN economic official,
Ton will supervise the operations of these three
ministries as well as those of the ministries of
labor, communications, and transportation. In addi-
tion, Ton will serve as chairman of the Economy and
Finance Committee which is the basic economic policy
committee of the GVN. It was also announced that
prominent businessman and former president of the
Saigon city council La Thanh Nghe, who had been
mentioned for the industry positionat the time of
the November reorganization, has been officially
appointed secretary of industry.
10. Apparently, Ton had refused to accept his
new position earlier because it would have appeared
that he had been named by former minister of economy
Thanh who, in his blistering farewell speech last
November, had recommended Ton as a replacement.
With the passage of two months, however, Ton can
now state that he was selected by the cabinet. Al-
though the re-establishment of an over-all economic
chief is a big step forward, Ton's first incumbency
in this position (June 1965 - February 1966) demon-
strated that he is a rather weak person. Conse-
quently, the US Embassy does not expect strong eco-
nomic policies or direction to emanate from Ton's
new office.
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 Approved For Release 2008/03/06: CIA-RDP79T00826A001600010046-8
W SECRET W
Minister Thuan's Views on the Saigon Port
11. In a meeting with US officials on 25 Janu-
ary, GVN Minister of Transportation and Communica-
tions Truong Van Thuan, who was recently given over-
all responsibility for all of South Vietnam's ports,
outlined his views on the Saigon port problem. Thuan
feels that special efforts should be made during the
Tet period to induce importers to remove their goods
from the port, particularly from the barges. One of
his major themes was the need to increase the number
of bonded warehouses that could be used for in-transit
cargo, and to provide additional customs officials to
cover these areas and give better service to importers.
Thuan also noted that he had been studying the port
situation intensively for almost a year and was now
preparing an operational plan for immediate improve-
ment of the port. He intends to circulate this plan
among US officials with whom he hopes to work closely.
Based on this initial meeting, the US Embassy com-
ments that Thuan appears to be off to a good start
in his new position.
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 Approved For Release 2008/03/06: CIA-RDP79T00826A001600010046-8
a SECRET W
13 Jun 16 Aug 9 Jan 16 Jan 23 Jan 30 Jan
1966 b/ 1966 b/
Index for All Items 173 211
Index for Food Items 190 216
Of Which:
(In Piasters)
Rice-Soc Nau (100 kg.) 1,250 1,450
Pork Bellies (1 kg.) 90 100
Fish-Ca Tre (1 kg.) 130 170
Nuoc Mam (jar) 70 85
Index for Non-Food Items 140 190
Of Which:
(In Piasters)
Charcoal (60,kg.) 460 600
Cigarettes (pack) 10 14
White Calico (meter) 27 37
1967
1967
1967
1967
232
239
247
254
246
257
269
283 c/
1,850
1,900
2,000
2,100
130
130
150
150
150
160
160
180
90
120
120
120
205
204
205
205 c
700
700
710
680
14
14
14
14
33
32
31
31
Electricity (kwh) 4.2 N.A. 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.2
c. Preliminary.
b. Price levels just prior to and two months after the 18 June devaluation.
a. Data are from USAID sources. For all indexes 1 January 1965 = 100.
SEUR-ET
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Weekly Retail Prices in Saigon a/
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w W
50
Saigon, Free Market Gold and Currency Prices
PIASTERS PER
US DOLLAR
31 DECEMBER
224
172
1964 1965 1966 1967
GOLD: Basis gold leaf worth $35 per troy ounce
US $10 GREEN
US $10 MPC Military Payment Certificate
NOV DEC JAN
1966 1967
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30 JAN