Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the Composite CPI for April 2007 rose by 0.59% over March to 112.58.
The increment was mainly attributable to the increases in the price indices of Clothing & footwear.
Compared with March 2007, the indices of Clothing & footwear; recorded notable increases of 1.67% respectively, on account of dearer prices in new arrivals of Summer clothing, higher charges for outbound package tours in the Easter holidays, as well as higher rental for housing.
On the other hand, the price index of Household goods and furnishings was the only section that recorded a decrease of 0.02%, as a result of lower prices.
The Composite CPI for April 2007 registered a year-on-year increase of 4.67%. The average Composite CPI for January to April 2007 went up by 4.60% over the same period of 2006. For the 12 months ended April 2007, the average Composite CPI rose by 4.79% over the previous period.
In addition, the CPI-A and CPI-B for April 2007 were 113.95 and 112.23, up by 0.51% and 0.62% respectively compared with March.
The Composite CPI reflects the impacts of price changes on the general population. The CPI-A relates to about 49% of households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP 3,000 to MOP 9,999, whereas the CPI-B relates to about 31% of households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP 10,000 to MOP 19,999.