Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI (102.73) for November 2019 increased by 2.70% year-on-year, which was 0.16 percentage points lower than the 2.86% growth in October 2019. The increment was attributable to higher rentals for dwellings, dearer charges for eating out and rising prices of fresh pork and gasoline.

Among the various sections of goods and services, price indices of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages and Education surged by 5.40% and 5.20% respectively year-on-year, whereas the indices of Clothing & Footwear and Communication dropped by 4.57% and 2.76%. The CPI-A (102.79) and CPI-B (102.64) saw respective increases of 2.68% and 3.28% year-on-year.

The Composite CPI for November 2019 edged up by 0.05% month-to-month. Price indices of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages and Clothing & Footwear went up by 0.61% and 0.45% respectively, on account of higher prices of fresh pork, fresh fish, seafood, fruits as well as new arrival of winter clothing. Price index of Housing & Fuels rose by 0.16% attributable to dearer Liquefied Petroleum Gas prices and rising rentals for dwellings. On the other hand, receding charges for package tours and lower airfares drove down the price indices of Recreation & Culture and Transport by 2.92% and 0.45% respectively. The CPI-A grew by 0.10% month-to-month while the CPI-B inched down by 0.02%.

For the 12 months ended November 2019, the average Composite CPI increased by 2.78% from the previous period, with notable growth in the price indices of Education (+5.72%) and Transport (+4.84%). The average CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 2.72% and 3.33% respectively over the previous period.

The average Composite CPI for the first eleven months of 2019 went up by 2.77% year-on-year, with the average CPI-A and CPI-B rising by 2.70% and 3.38% 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 MOP12,000 to MOP35,999. The CPI-B relates to about 30% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP36,000 to MOP62,999.