Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI in October 2018 increased by 3.35% year-on-year to 113.73, down by 0.16 percentage points from the 3.51% growth in September. The increment in October was attributable to higher rentals for dwellings, dearer charges for eating out, rising parking meter rates as well as increasing prices of gasoline and women’s clothing.
Among the various sections of goods and services, price indices of Transport, Education and Clothing & Footwear grew notably by 6.31%, 5.84% and 5.71% respectively year-on-year, while the index of Communication decreased by 6.72%. The CPI-A (113.88) and CPI-B (112.40) rose by 3.41% and 2.91% respectively year-on-year.
The Composite CPI in October 2018 increased by 0.16% month-to-month. New arrival of winter clothing, footwear, etc. pushed up the price index of Clothing & Footwear by 1.54%. Price index of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages went up by 0.34% on account of rising charges for eating out, and higher prices of fresh fish, seafood and pork; yet, lower prices of vegetables tapered off part of the increase. On the other hand, receding charges for package tours drove the price index of Recreation & Culture down by 0.57%. The CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 0.16% and 0.20% respectively month-to-month.
For the 12 months ended October 2018, the average Composite CPI rose by 2.81% from the previous period, with notable growth in the price indices of Clothing & Footwear (+5.70%), Transport (+5.11%), Health (+4.70%) and Education (+4.48%). The average CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 2.82% and 2.74% respectively over the previous period.
The average Composite CPI for the first ten months of 2018 climbed by 3.00% year-on-year; the average CPI-A and CPI-B went up by 3.01% and 2.90% respectively.
The Composite CPI reflects the impact of price changes on the general households in Macao. The CPI-A relates to about 50% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP10,000 to MOP29,999. The CPI-B relates to about 30% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP30,000 to MOP54,999.