8
-
CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES FOR JANUARY
*****
THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY PUBLISHED THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES FOR JANUARY 1987. THE NEW CPI (A) AND NEW CPI (B) (OCTOBER 84/SEPTEMBER 85 = 100) FOR JANUARY 1987 WERE 105.8 AND 106.2 RESPECTIVELY, REPRESENTING INCREASES OF 4.5 PER CENT OVER JANUARY 1986 FOR BOTH INDEXES.
COMPARED WITH DECEMBER 1986 AND BEARING IN MIND THAT THIS COMPARISON MAY BE AFFECTED BY SEASONAL FACTORS, THE NEW CPI (A) INCREASED BY 0.7 PER CENT AND THE NEW CPI (B), BY 0.5 PER CENT. THE AVERAGE NEW CPI (A) AND AVERAGE NEW CPI (B) FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED JANUARY 1987 WERE 104.0 AND 104.4 RESPECTIVELY.
THE 1979-80-BASED CPI (A) AND CPI (B) FOR JANUARY 1987 WERE 167.9 AND 169.5 RESPECTIVELY. COMPARED WITH DECEMBER 1986, CPI (A) INCREASED BY 0.6 PER CENT AND CPI (B), BY 0.5 PER CENT. THE AVERAGE CPI (A) AND AVERAGE CPI (B) FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED JANUARY 1987, AT 164.9 AND 166.3 RESPECTIVELY, WERE 3.0 PER CENT AND 3.6 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY HIGHER THAN THE AVERAGE FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED JANUARY 1986.
PRICE MOVEMENTS DESCRIBED BELOW ARE BASED ON THE NEW CPI SERIES.
DURING THE THREE-MONTH PERIOD ENDED JANUARY 1987, THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED NEW CPI (A) INCREASED AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF 0.6 PER CENT PER MONTH, AND THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED NEW CPI (B), AT 0.5 PER CENT PER MONTH.
DURING JANUARY, RETAIL PRICES OF LIVE POULTRY, FRESH FRUIT SHRIMPS AND CRABS INCREASED. CHARGES FOR MEALS IN RESTAURANTS AND OTHER EATING PLACES AND FOR HAIRDRESSING ALSO WENT UP. ON THE OTHER HAND, RETAIL PRICES OF CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR 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 JANUARY 1987 IN RESPECT OF THE NINE COMMODITY/SERVICE SECTIONS IN THE TWO CONSUMER PRICE INDEXES, AS COMPARED WITH DECEMBER 1986 AND JANUARY 1986, ARE GIVEN BELOW.
(OCTOBER 1984 TO SEPTEMBER 1985 AVERAGE 100)
NEW CPI (A)
NEW CPI (8)
SECTION
INDEX % CHANGE
FOR
OVER JAN. 87 DEC. 86
% CHANGE INDEX
OVER JAN. 86
CHANGE FOR
OVER JAN. 87 DEC. 86
CHANGE
OVER
JAN. 86
FOODSTUFFS
102.5
+1.4
+3.5
HOUSING
108.4
+0.1
+5.3
106.4
103.2 +1.5
+0.2
+3.6
+4.1
/FUEL AND