Hong Kong: Inflation rises in December from the prior month
Latest reading: Consumer prices were up 1.5% on a year-on-year basis in December, following a 1.2% rise in the previous month. As such, inflation remains well below the global average, kept in check by mainland China’s huge manufacturing capacity.
The uptick mainly reflected quicker price increases in transport services, which rose 4.3% from 3.5%, and in miscellaneous services, accelerating to 2.3% from 1.9%, while price drops in clothing and footwear and in durable goods were less pronounced. Housing inflation was unchanged at 1.6%. In contrast, inflation eased for food, and utility prices declined more sharply.
Finally, consumer prices were up 0.37% in December on a month-on-month basis, following a flat reading in the previous month.