XN000022-1994-08-22 — Page 2

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MONDAY, AUGUST 22, 1994

CONSUMER PRICE INDICES FOR JULY 1994

(B)

THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (A) AND THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX IN JULY THIS YEAR WERE 8.5% AND 8.6% RESPECTIVELY HIGHER THAN IN JULY LAST YEAR, ACCORDING TO FIGURES RELEASED TODAY (MONDAY) BY THE AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

WHILE THE INCREASES WERE HIGHER THAN

AND INCREASES

8.1% IN JUNE, THEY WERE OF 7.5% INFLATION FORECAST OF 8.5% FOR THE YEAR AS A WHOLE,

CENSUS

THE

CORRESPONDING

IN LINE WITH THE

SAID:

HIGHER

COMMENTING ON THE LATEST FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN "THE FASTER INCREASES IN JULY WERE MAINLY DUE TO SUBSTANTIALLY PRICES OF FRESH VEGETABLES AS A RESULT OF THE RECENT FLOODING IN SOUTH CHINA AND THE SEVERAL RAINSTORMS IN JULY."

TAKING

CPI (B) PERIOD IN 1993. CORRESPONDING AVERAGE

THE FIRST SEVEN MONTHS TOGETHER, THE CPI(A) AND ROSE BY 7.6% AND 8.1% RESPECTIVELY OVER THE SAME THESE WERE STILL CONSIDERABLY LOWER THAN THE ANNUAL INCREASES OF 8.5% AND 8.7% IN 1993.

THE 1994 WAS

ΤΟ DUE

A

THE HANG SENG CPI WAS HIGHER BY 9.9% IN JULY 1994 THAN IN SAME MONTH LAST YEAR. THE CORRESPONDING INCREASE IN JUNE 10.1%. THE

SLOWER INCREASE IN JULY WAS MAINLY SLIGHTLY MODERATION IN THE PRICES OF CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR.

то

WAS STILL HOWEVER, THE INCREASE IN THE HANG SENG CPI IN JULY

THIS WAS MAINLY ATTRIBUTED FASTER THAN IN THE CPI(A) AND CPI(B). THE FASTER INCREASE IN RENTALS PAID BY HOUSEHOLDS COVERED BY THE HANG SENG CPI.

COMBINED ON THE THE COMPOSITE CPI, WHICH IS COMPILED BASED EXPENDITURE PATTERN OF HOUSEHOLDS COVERED BY THE THREE CPIS, SHOWED AN THIS WAS INCREASE OF 8.9% IN JULY 1994 OVER THE SAME MONTH IN 1993. HIGHER THAN THE CORRESPONDING INCREASE OF 8.4% IN JUNE.

SLOWER PRICE AND LIGHT AND

MISCELLANEOUS

COMPARING JULY 1994 WITH JULY 1993, RELATIVELY INCREASES THAN THE OVERALL AVERAGE WERE RECORDED FOR FUEL (3.2% IN THE CPI(A) AND 3.1% IN THE CPI (B)); DURABLE GOODS (3.3% 3.6%); ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AND TOBACCO (5.3% AND 5.9%); GOODS (5.5% AND 4.8%); FOOD (EXCLUDING MEALS AT RESTAURANTS) (6.9% AND 6.5%); MEALS AT RESTAURANTS (7.9% AND 7.7%); AND CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR (8.0% AND 8.2%).

THE ON THE OTHER HAND, RELATIVELY FASTER PRICE INCREASES THAN OVERALL AVERAGE WERE RECORDED FOR MISCELLANEOUS SERVICES (12.5% IN THE

AND (11.1%

11.4%); AND CPI(A) AND 11.3% IN THE CPI(B)); HOUSING TRANSPORT (9.5% AND 9.4%).

COMPARING JULY

CPI (A)

THIS

AND

CPI(B) COMPARISON

WITH JUNE 1994, THE 1994

HOWEVER, INCREASED BY 0.8% AND 0.6% RESPECTIVELY. COULD HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY SEASONAL FACTORS.

/FOR THE