Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI for November 2015 increased by 3.77% year-on-year to 107.04, down from the 4.16% growth in October 2015. The increment was attributable to higher rentals for dwellings, rising charges for eating out and dearer rentals for parking spaces. In comparison with November 2014, notable increase was observed in the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco, up by 39.43%; price index of Education and Household Goods & Furnishings increased by 8.99% and 6.54% on account of higher tuition fee and rising wages of domestic helpers. On the contrary, price index of Clothing & Footwear (-2.10%) and Communication (-0.43%) registered decrease. The CPI-A (107.28) and CPI-B (105.05) rose by 3.89% and 2.76% respectively year-on-year. The Composite CPI for November 2015 increased by 0.10% month-to-month. Higher prices of alcoholic beverages & tobacco and women’s winter clothing & footwear drove up the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco and Clothing & Footwear by 2.48% and 1.98% respectively. On the other hand, price index of Miscellaneous Goods & Services and Transport decreased by 0.47% and 0.40% respectively owing to reduced prices of jewellery, clocks, watches and other personal effects such as handbags and wallets, as well as lower prices of gasoline and airfare. In spite of the increase in prices of fruits, receding prices of vegetables and fresh pork tapered off the increase in the price index of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages. The CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 0.11% and 0.01% respectively month-to-month. For the 12 months ended November 2015, the average Composite CPI increased by 4.71% from the previous period. Price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+14.25%) and Housing & Fuels (+8.69%) showed marked increase. The average CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 5.08% and 3.85% respectively over the previous period. The average Composite CPI for the first eleven months of 2015 increased by 4.64% year-on-year, with the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco and Housing & Fuels rising by 15.50% and 8.43% respectively. The average CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 4.98% and 3.74% respectively. The Composite CPI reflects the impact of price changes on the general households. 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.
