Consumer prices increase 2.86% in October

The Composite Consumer Price Index for October 2019 increased by 2.86% year-on-year to reach 102.68, according to data released yesterday by the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC).
The growth in consumer prices, seen as a key indicator of inflation, increased by 0.13 percentage points from the 2.73% year-on-year growth in September 2019. DSEC attributed the increase to higher charges for eating out, rising rentals for dwellings and dearer pork and gasoline prices, among other goods.
Analyzed by categories of goods and services, the price index of food and non-alcoholic beverages grew 4.76% year-on-year, while that of education and transport increased by 5.24% and 4.85%, respectively.
Meanwhile, the index for clothing and footwear dropped by 1.93% year-on-year and that of communication slipped 2.57%.
The average Composite CPI for the first 10 months of 2019 showed growth of 2.78% when compared to the same period of last year, with the growth led by those households with a higher overall monthly expenditure.
The Composite CPI reflects the impact of price changes on general households in Macau. DB