MONDAY, APRIL 22, 1991
THE REBASED SERIES OF CPI(B) COVERS ABOUT 30 PER CENT OF URBAN HOUSEHOLDS, WHICH BELONG TO THE MEDIUM EXPENDITURE BRACKET. THESE HOUSEHOLDS SPENT BETWEEN $10,000 AND $17,499 A MONTH IN THE SAME BASE PERIOD.
MR MOK INTRODUCED THE WEIGHTING PATTERNS OF THE 1989/90-BASED SERIES OF CPI(A) AND (B) AND COMPARED THEM WITH THOSE FOR THE 1984/85- BASED SERIES.
THE EXPENDITURE SHARE OF THE "FOODSTUFFS" SECTION HAS DECLINED. OUT OF THE TOTAL EXPENDITURE SPENT ON FOODSTUFFS, AN INCREASING PROPORTION IS SPENT ON MEALS BOUGHT AWAY FROM HOME WHILE THE PROPORTION SPENT ON BASIC FOOD ITEMS HAS DECREASED.
"THIS REFLECTS THE INCREASING POPULARITY AND PREFERENCE OF HOUSEHOLDS FOR EATING OUT," MR MOK SAID.
A RELATIVELY SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE EXPENDITURE SHARE OF "HOUSING" WAS RECORDED. THIS COULD PARTLY BR EXPLAINED BY THE GENERAL IMPROVEMENT IN THE QUALITY OF HOUSING. THE PROPORTION OF HOUSEHOLDS WHO ARE OWNER-OCCUPIERS HAS RISEN OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS. MOREOVER, THE AVERAGE LIVING AREA OCCUPIED PER PERSON HAS INCREASED.
"APART FROM COLLECTING INFORMATION ON EXPENDITURE WEIGHTS, THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT CARRIES OUT SEPARATELY A CONTINUOUS PRICING SURVEY TO COLLECT PRICE DATA ON A LARGE NUMBER OF COMMODITIES AND SERVICES FROM NUMEROUS RETAIL OUTLETS AND SERVICES PROVIDERS, MOK SAID IN EXPLAINING THE METHOD OF COMPILING CPI'S.
MR
THE ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER OF HANG SENG BANK, MR ROGER LUK, WHO WAS ALSO PRESENT AT TODAY'S PRESS CONFERENCE, SAID THE HANG SENG CPI, WHICH RELATES TO HOUSEHOLDS IN THE HIGH EXPENDITURE BRACKET, HAS ALSO BEEN REBASED.
THE HANG SENG CPI COVERS ABOUT 10 PER CENT OF URBAN HOUSEHOLDS, WHOSE MONTHLY EXPENDITURE IN THE PERIOD OCTOBER 1989 TO SEPTEMBER 1990 WAS BETWEEN $17,500 AND $37,499.
THE MORE NOTABLE CHANGES IN THE WEIGHTING PATTERN OF THE HANG SENG CPI ARE ALSO THE DECREASE IN THE EXPENDITURE SHARE OF FOODSTUFFS AND THE INCREASE IN THE SHARE OF HOUSING.
THE REBASED CPI SERIES, WHICH STARTS FROM OCTOBER 1990, WILL BE PUBLISHED IN THE MARCH 1991 ISSUE OF THE CPI MONTHLY REPORT. THE 1984/85-BASED CPI'S WILL CONTINUE ΤΟ BE COMPILED AND PUBLISHED CONCURRENTLY UNTIL MARCH 1992.
"MEANWHILE, A DETAILED
REPORT ON THE 1989/90 HES AND AN INTRODUCTORY PAMPHLET ON THE REBASED SERIES OF CPI'S ARE BEING PREPARED, AND WILL BE AVAILABLE IN ABOUT TWO MONTHS' TIME," MR MOK ADDED.
/EXPENDITURE WEIGHTS