Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI in September 2018 grew by 3.51% year-on-year to 113.54, a further increase of 0.19 percentage points from the 3.32% growth in August. The increment in September was attributable to higher rentals for dwellings, dearer charges for eating out, rising parking meter rates as well as increasing prices of gasoline and adults’ clothing.

Among the various sections of goods and services, price indices of Clothing & Footwear, Transport and Education grew notably by 7.20%, 6.39% and 5.83% respectively year-on-year, while the index of Communication decreased by 7.92%. The CPI-A (113.71) and CPI-B (112.18) rose by 3.57% and 3.08% respectively year-on-year.

The Composite CPI in September 2018 increased by 0.30% month-to-month. Higher tuition fees, dearer charges for tutorial classes in the new academic year, and rising wages for domestic helpers drove up the price indices of Education, Household Goods & Furnishings and Miscellaneous Goods & Services by 5.62%, 0.79% and 0.63% respectively month-to-month. Meanwhile, price index of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages grew by 0.55% owing to higher prices of vegetables, fruits and fresh pork as well as rising charges for eating out. On the other hand, price indices of Recreation & Culture and Clothing & Footwear dropped by 2.82% and 0.94% respectively on account of receding charges for package tours after the summer holidays as well as seasonal sale of clothing. The CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 0.31% and 0.26% respectively month-to-month.

For the 12 months ended September 2018, the average Composite CPI rose by 2.66% from the previous period, with notable growth in the price indices of Clothing & Footwear (+5.47%), Transport (+4.79%) and Health (+4.73%). The average CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 2.67% and 2.61% respectively over the previous period.

The average Composite CPI for the third quarter of 2018 (113.29) climbed by 3.39% year-on-year; the average CPI-A and CPI-B went up by 3.43% and 3.03% respectively. The average Composite CPI for the first nine months of 2018 increased by 2.96% year-on-year; the average CPI-A and CPI-B grew by 2.97% 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.