TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 1985
FEBRUARY CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES RELEASED
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THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (A) ROSE BY 2.8 PER CENT AND THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (B) BY 3.4 PER CENT BETWEEN FEBRUARY 1984 AND FEBRUARY 1985, ACCORDING TO FIGURES PUBLISHED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
THE CPI(A) AND CPI(B) FOR FEBRUARY 1985 WERE 157.9 AND 158.0 RESPECTIVELY, OR 4.3 POINTS AND 5.2 POINTS HIGHER THAN THOSE FOR FEBRUARY 1984. COMPARED WITH JANUARY 1985 AND BEARING IN MIND THAT THIS COMPARISON IS AFFECTED BY SEASONAL FACTORS, CPI(A) INCREASED BY 1.4 POINTS OR 0.8 PER CENT AND CPI(B), BY
1.0 POINT OR 0.6 PER CENT.
THE AVERAGE CPI(A) AND AVERAGE CPI(B) FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED FEBRUARY 1985, AT 155.7 AND 155.6 RESPECTIVELY, WERE 6.7 PER CENT AND 7.2 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY HIGHER THAN THE AVERAGES FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED FEBRUARY 1984.
DURING THE THREE-MONTH PERIOD ENDED FEBRUARY 1985, BOTH THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED CPI(A) AND CPI(B) INCREASED AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF 0.1 PER CENT EACH MONTH.
DURING FEBRUARY, FOOD PRICES, ESPECIALLY THOSE OF LIVE POULTRY AND FRESH VEGETABLES, WERE HIGHER. CHARGES FOR MEALS IN RESTAURANTS AND OTHER EATING PLACES, HAIRDRESSING CHARGES AND BUS FARES ALSO WENT UP. ON THE OTHER HAND, PRICES OF CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR DECREASED.
THE CPI(A) AND CPI(B) ARE BASED ON THE EXPENDITURE PATTERNS OF 50 PER CENT AND 30 PER CENT, RESPECTIVELY, OF URBAN HOUSEHOLDS IN HONG KONG, WHICH WERE DERIVED FROM THE 1979/80 HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURE SURVEY. THE CPI(A) REFERRED TO HOUSEHOLDS SPENDING BETWEEN $1 000 AND $3 499 A MONTH, AND THE CPI(B) TO HOUSEHOLDS SPENDING BETWEEN $3 500 AND $6 499 A MONTH AT THAT TIME.
THE INDEXES FOR FEBRUARY 1985 IN RESPECT OF THE NINE COMMODITY/ SERVICE SECTIONS IN THE TWO CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES ARE GIVEN BELOW, TOGETHER WITH THOSE FOR JANUARY 1985 AND FEBRUARY 1984.
/(OCTOBER 1979