Month-on-Month Growth Rates

The month-on-month growth rate of the seasonally adjusted CPI for all items at the national level improved to 0.5 percent in January from 0.6 percent in December. A negative rate was observed in alcoholic beverages and tobacco index at 0.6 percent in January from 0.1 percent in December. Moreover, slower upticks were registered in the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels index at 0.2 percent from 1.5 percent and health index, 0.4 percent from 0.5 percent. On the other hand, the clothing and footwear index rose 0.5 percent from 0.4 percent and recreation and culture index, 0.3 percent from 0.1 percent. The same previous month’s rates were recorded in the indices of furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house and education while that for restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services index was zero.

The index for all items was pushed up by the seasonal factor like the practice of implementing business changes at the start of every year relative to the expected trend. Meanwhile, this seasonal factor pushed down the indices of the other commodity groups with no effect registered in the health index.

In NCR, the seasonally adjusted CPI in furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house went up 0.9 percent in January from 0.2 percent in December. On the contrary, adjustments in the non-food index declined by 0.1 percent from a positive growth of 0.7 percent and transport index, -0.3 percent from 1.1 percent. Movements in the indices of alcoholic beverages and tobacco and education remained at their last month’s rate of 0.3 percent.

A seasonal factor like the implementation of business changes observed during the first month of the year raised the index for furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house relative to the expected trend. This seasonal factor however pushed down the non-food and education indices. Meanwhile, the alcoholic beverages and tobacco and transport indices were not affected by this seasonal factor during the month.

Higher increments were noticed in the seasonally adjusted CPI in AONCR for furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house and education at 0.4 percent in January from their respective previous month’s rates of 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent and recreation and culture index, 0.3 percent from 0.1 percent. On the other hand, the index of alcoholic beverages and tobacco dropped by 0.8 percent from a growth of 0.1 percent last month. Likewise, slower gains were seen in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels index at 0.4 percent from 1.4 percent; health index, 0.3 percent from 0.6 percent; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services index, 0.2 percent from 0.3 percent. The clothing and footwear index retained its last month’s rate of 0.4 percent.

The practice of implementing business changes at the beginning of the year generally pushed down the indices of all the commodity groups in AONCR relative to the expected trend.