THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 1986
10
CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES FOR MAY
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THE NEW CPI(A) AND NEW CP1(B) (OCTOBER 84-SEPTEMBER 85 = 100) FOR MAY 1986 WERE 102.9 AND 103.4 RESPECTIVELY, ACCORDING TO STATISTICS RELEASED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY.
COMPARED WITH APRIL 1986 AND BEARING IN MIND THAT THIS COMPARISON MAY BE AFFECTED BY SEASONAL FACTORS, THE NEW CPI(A) DECREASED BY 0.1 PER CENT AND THE NEW CPI(B) SHOWED ALMOST NO CHANGE.
ON THE OTHER HAND, THE 1979-80-BASED CPI(A) AND CPI(B) FOR MAY 1986 WERE 163.1 AND 164.7 RESPECTIVELY, REPRESENTING INCREASES OF 2.6 PER CENT AND 3.3 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY OVER MAY 1985. COMPARED WITH APRIL 1986, CPI(A) DECREASED BY 0.1 PER CENT AND CPI(B) SHOWED ALMOST NO CHANGE.
THE AVERAGE CPI(A) AND AVERAGE CPI(B) FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED MAY 1986, AT 161.4 AND 162.2 RESPECTIVELY, WERE 2.8 PER CENT AND 3.2 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY HIGHER THAN THE AVERAGE FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED MAY 1985.
PRICE MOVEMENTS DESCRIBED BELOW ARE BASED ON THE NEW CPI SERIES.
DURING THE THREE-MONTH PERIOD ENDED MAY 1986, THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED NEW CPI(A) INCREASED AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF 0.3 PER CENT PER MONTH AND THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED NEW CPI(B) AT 0.4 PER CENT PER MONTH.
DURING MAY, RETAIL PRICES OF SALT-WATER FISH, LIVE POULTRY AND CIGARETTES INCREASED. ON THE OTHER HAND, RETAIL PRICES OF FRESH VEGETABLES AND PETROLEUM PRODUCTS DECREASED.
THE NEW CPI(A) AND THE NEW 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 1984-85 HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURE SURVEY.
THE NEW CPI(A) REFERS TO HOUSEHOLDS SPENDING BETWEEN $2 000 AND $6 499 A MONTH AT THAT TIME AND THE NEW CPI(B) BETWEEN $6 500 AND $9 999 A MONTH.
CHANGES IN THE INDEXES FOR MAY 1986 1N RESPECT OF THE NINE COMMODITY-SERVICE SECTIONS IN THE TWO NEW CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES, AS COMPARED WITH APRIL 1986, ARE GIVEN BELOW.
/(OCTOBER