Results of the Consumer Price Index for September 2007

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the Composite CPI for September 2007 rose by 0.08% over August to 115.82, which was attributable to the increase in the price indices of Food & non-alcoholic beverages; and Housing & fuels. However, the increment was largely offset by a sharp decrease registered in the index of Education. Compared with August 2007, the indices of Communication; Miscellaneous goods & services; Food & non-alcoholic beverages; and Housing & fuels recorded notable increase of 1.96%, 1.46%, 1.32% and 0.97% respectively, on account of a reduction of the discount offered for IDD calls, higher charges for private tutorial class and meals brought away from home, as well as rising rentals for housing. On the other hand, the index of Education dropped drastically by 5.86%, due to the increased government subsidies to the tuition fees of the students studying in schools that are not within the free education network. Moreover, lower charges for outbound package tours after the Summer holidays and the reduction sale of women’s clothing drove the indices of Recreation & culture; and Clothing & footwear down by 1.03% and 0.95% respectively. The Composite CPI for September 2007 registered a year-on-year increase of 5.94%. The average Composite CPI for January to September went up by 5.19% over the same period of 2006. For the 12 months ended September 2007, the average Composite CPI rose by 5.00% over the previous period. The Composite CPI for the third quarter of 2007 increased by 6.11% over the same quarter of last year, with marked increase in the indices of Housing & fuels (+10.05%) and Food & non-alcoholic beverages (+9.33%). In addition, the CPI-A and CPI-B for September 2007 were 117.60 and 115.42, up by 0.17% and 0.16% respectively compared with August. The Composite CPI reflects the impacts of price changes on the general population. The CPI-A relates to about 49% of households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP 3,000 to MOP 9,999. The CPI-B relates to about 31% of households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP 10,000 to MOP 19,999.