The consumer price index (CPI) in Taiwan rose 2.84 percent from a year earlier, marking the sixth consecutive month the CPI has topped the 2 percent alert level set by the government, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said Friday.
In addition to the spike in the CPI in January, data compiled by the DGBAS showed that core CPI, which excludes fruit, vegetables and energy, rose 2.42 percent from a year earlier, the first time core CPI has breached the 2 percent threshold since January 2009, when it rose 2.73 percent year-on-year.
On a month-on-month basis, the January CPI rose 0.58 percent, and after seasonal adjustments the index also increased 0.42 percent, the data indicated.
Lunar New Year effects
Speaking with reporters, Tsao Chih-hung (曹志弘), a specialist at the DGBAS, said the higher CPI partly reflects an increase in service fees ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, which this year was from Jan. 29 to Feb. 6.
In January, baby sitting service expenses soared 28.21 percent from a year earlier as it is a tradition for families to give bonuses to their baby sitters with the New Year holiday approaching.
Excluding the seasonal factors from the New Year holiday, the CPI and core CPI growth fell to 2.5 percent and 2 percent, respectively in January, Tsai said.
In addition, Tsao cited higher dining-out expenditure as another reason for the CPI spike in January as more and more restaurants raised prices in the wake of rising food ingredient prices.
In January, dining-out expenses grew 3.87 percent from a year earlier, the highest growth since January 2015, when such expenditure rose 4.01 percent from a year earlier, according to the DGBAS.
The increase in dining-out expenses is expected to slow down in the second quarter of this year after a majority of food vendors raise prices, Tsao said.
Food prices
Meanwhile, food prices as a whole rose 3.75 percent from a year earlier in January with fruit prices surging 21.41 percent due to heavy rain, while the price of eggs, fishery items and meat rose 15.62 percent, 5.28 percent and 4.76 percent, respectively, the DGBAS data showed. In particular, the prices of hen’s eggs jumped 18.38 percent year-on-year in January due to a supply shortage, the data indicated.
However, vegetable prices in January bucked the upturn, falling 15.98 percent from a year earlier due to an increase in supply, the DGBAS said.
The January CPI was also boosted by higher transportation and communications expenses, rising 5.19 percent from a year earlier, after fuel prices rose 16.77 percent due to a spike in international crude oil prices, the DGBAS said.
In January, the cost of a basket of 17 government-monitored household necessities, including rice, pork, bread, eggs, sugar, cooking oil, instant noodles, shampoo and toilet paper, rose 2.93 percent from a year earlier, after a 3.53 percent increase in December, the DGBAS data showed.
Wholesale price index
Meanwhile, the wholesale price index (WPI) surged 10.83 percent from a year earlier in January, largely reflecting an increase in the price of base metals, oil and coal products, chemicals and drugs, the DGBAS said. Nevertheless, the increase in January was lower than the 12.46 percent recorded in December.
The import price index rose 12.35 percent in January from a year earlier in Taiwan dollar terms and was up 15.36 percent in U.S. dollar terms, while the export price index grew 9.55 percent in Taiwan dollar terms and climbed 12.49 percent in U.S. dollar terms, the data showed.
Tsao said the WPI is expected to push up the CPI even further, but the government has introduced measures to stabilize prices, including a cut in import tariffs.
Despite the spike in the CPI in January, Tsao said, the prices of consumer items have not moved steadily and significantly higher en masse, so there is no need to worry about inflation for the time being.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel