A SLOWING in the rate of price increases in January - as measured by the Consumer Price Index A (CPI A) - has been attributed to the fact that the Lunar New Year did not fall in that month this year.
The New Year is traditionally a time of higher prices for food and consumer goods.
The Government pointed out yesterday that the year-on-year comparison for January was distorted by the fact that the Lunar New Year occurred in January last year but fell in February this year.
Figures released by the Census and Statistics Department showed that the CPI A grew 6.2 per cent in January, the lowest growth since November 1987 and significantly lower than the corresponding increase of 8.6 per cent last December.
CPI A measures a basket of prices for families with incomes of up to $9,000 a month.
''As prices for fresh food in January this year were relatively low and by contrast were relatively high near the Lunar New Year period in January last year, the food component index of the CPI, excluding eating out, showed a decline,'' a government spokesman said.