Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI in June 2018 increased by 3.11% year-on-year to 112.84, up further by 0.14 percentage points from the 2.97% growth in May. The increment in June was attributable to higher charges for eating out, rising rentals for dwellings and parking meter rates, as well as increasing prices of gasoline and women’s clothing & footwear.
Among the various sections of goods and services, price indices of Clothing & Footwear, Transport and Health went up by 8.43%, 6.30% and 5.10% respectively year-on-year, while the index of Communication decreased markedly by 7.80%. The CPI-A (112.96) and CPI-B (111.89) rose by 3.13% and 2.94% respectively year-on-year.
The Composite CPI in June 2018 increased by 0.36% month-to-month. New arrival of summer clothing and footwear drove up the price index of Clothing & Footwear by 3.05%. Price index of Recreation & Culture grew by 0.68% owing to higher prices of flowers and pet products as well as rising charges for package tours. Meanwhile, price index of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages rose by 0.10% on account of dearer charges for eating out and higher prices of vegetables; yet receding prices of fresh fish, seafood and fruits tapered off part of the increase. The CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 0.36% and 0.33% respectively month-to-month.
For the 12 months ended June 2018, the average Composite CPI rose by 2.13% from the previous period, with notable increases in the price indices of Health (+4.88%), Education (+4.73%) and Clothing & Footwear (+4.43%). The average CPI-A and CPI-B both grew by 2.13% over the previous period.
The average Composite CPI for the second quarter of 2018 (112.44) increased by 2.99% year-on-year; the average CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 2.99% and 2.91% respectively. The average Composite CPI for the first half of 2018 rose by 2.75% year-on-year; the average CPI-A and CPI-B went up by 2.73% and 2.83% 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.