FRIDAY, MAY 24, 1985
CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES FOR APRIL 1985
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THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (A) ROSE BY 3.9 PER CENT AND THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (B) BY 4.2 PER CENT BETWEEN APRIL 1984 AND APRIL 1985, ACCORDING TO FIGURES PUBLISHED TODAY (FRIDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
THE CPI(A) AND CPI(B) FOR APRIL 1985 WERE 159.9 AND 160.0 RESPECTIVELY, OR SIX POINTS AND 6.5 POINTS RESPECTIVELY HIGHER THAN THOSE FOR APRIL 1984. COMPARED WITH MARCH 1985 AND BEARING IN MIND THAT THIS COMPARISON IS AFFECTED BY SEASONAL FACTORS, CPI (A) INCREASED BY 0.6 POINT OR 0.4 PER CENT AND CPI(B), BY 0.9 POINT OR 0.6 PER CENT.
THE AVERAGE CPI(A) AND AVERAGE CPI(B) FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED APRIL 1985, BOTH AT 156.7, WERE 5.9 PER CENT AND 6.3 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY HIGHER THAN THE AVERAGES FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED APRIL 1984.
DURING THE THREE-MONTH PERIOD ENDED APRIL 1985, BOTH THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED CPI(A) AND CPI(B) INCREASED AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF 0.5 PER CENT EACH MONTH.
DURING APRIL, RETAIL PRICES OF FRESH VEGETABLES, RENTALS OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE DWELLINGS, AND PRICES OF CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR WERE HIGHER.
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) REFERS TO HOUSEHOLDS SPENDING BETWEEN $1 000 AND $3 499 A MONTH, AND THE CPI(B) TO HOUSEHOLDS SPENDING BETWEEN $3500 AND $6 499 A MONTH AT THAT TIME.
THE INDEXES FOR APRIL 1985 IN RESPECT OF THE NINE COMMODITY/ SERVICE SECTIONS IN THE TWO CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES ARE GIVEN BELOW, TOGETHER WITH THOSE FOR MARCH 1985 AND APRIL 1984.
/(OCTOBER 1979