Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI for February 2023 (104.20) grew by 0.77% year-on-year. The increment was attributed to higher charges for eating out and electricity, dearer wages of domestic helpers, increased tuition fees, as well as rising prices of gasoline; yet, the rise was partially offset by lower rentals for dwellings and receding airfares. Among the various sections of goods and services, price indices of Education and Household Furnishings & Services rose by 9.98% and 6.52% year-on-year respectively, whereas the indices of Housing & Fuels and Communication dropped by 1.70% and 1.57% respectively. The CPI-A (103.77) and CPI-B (104.77) saw respective growth of 0.55% and 1.05% year-on-year.
In comparison with January, the Composite CPI rose by 0.09% in February. Higher prices of alcoholic beverages and rising medical insurance premiums drove up the price indices of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco and Miscellaneous Goods & Services by 0.80% and 0.59% respectively. Price index of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages grew by 0.34% owing to dearer charges for eating out. On the other hand, price index of Transport decreased by 1.30% due to lower airfares. The CPI-A and CPI-B went up by 0.10% and 0.08% month-on-month respectively.
For the 12 months ended February 2023, the average Composite CPI grew by 1.02% from the previous period, and the price indices of Household Furnishings & Services (+10.78%), Education (+5.73%) and Transport (+5.39%) showed notable growth. The average CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 0.70% and 1.45% respectively over the previous period.
The average Composite CPI for the first two months of 2023 rose by 0.77% year-on-year. The average CPI-A and CPI-B went up by 0.52% and 1.09% respectively.
DSEC compiles three separate CPI series to reflect the impact of price changes for goods/services on households of different expenditure ranges. The CPI-A and CPI-B relate to about 50% and 30% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP12,000-MOP35,999 and MOP36,000-MOP62,999 respectively; meanwhile, the Composite CPI relates to all the above-mentioned households.