More expensive health and social services

The consumer price index rose by 0.3 per cent from January to February 1999. The price rise in individual services is one factor behind this rise, while lower prices for energy products, among others, acted as a countervailing trend.

Services (excluding rents) had a price rise of 0.5 per cent in the last month. Health and social services in particular showed a price increase. Self-payment for home nursing and treatment by doctors and physical therapists all rose by around 6 per cent, while day-care fees showed an increase of just over four per cent.

Self-payment to doctors has undergone an especially rapid increase in recent years. After having remained unchanged since 1994, doctors' rates made a jump in 1997. From July 1997 to February 1999, the rates have risen by about 34 per cent. In the same period the rates for physiotherapy and home nursing have undergone a more moderate increase.

Dentists' rates have also undergone sharp rise in recent years. Since the public price regulation was abolished in January 1996, the dentists themselves have had an opportunity to price their services. From this point in time dentists' rates have increased by about 26 per cent. In the period from 1993 to 1996 the rates rose by a little over 7 per cent.

In addition to the increase in individual services, the price rises in clothes and furniture have been important factors behind the trend in the total index for February.

Cheaper energy

The prices for gasoline declined by one per cent from January to February. The reintroduction of gasoline price leveling subsidies may be one reason for lower gasoline prices. The decline was somewhat more pronounced in Akershus County than in the rest of the country. After three months with increases, the prices of electrical power, including grid rent and duties, underwent a slight reduction last month. The prices in February were about three per cent lower than in the corresponding month last year. The signals from the energy utilities indicate that there will be further drops in the prices of electrical power in the months ahead.

Harmonized consumer price index

The Norwegian harmonized index increased by 0.4 per cent from December 1998 to January 1999, while the harmonized index for the whole EU declined by 0.2 per cent. From January last year to January this year the growth amounted to 2.0 per cent for Norway. This gives Norway the sharpest growth in consumer prices of the Nordic countries when measured by changes in the last 12 months. Denmark, Finland and Iceland had changes of 1.2, 0.5 and 0.4 per cent respectively. Sweden had no change from January last year to January this year.

For February the Norwegian harmonized consumer price index was 105.9 (1996 = 100), a rise of 0.2 per cent from January this year and 2.0 per cent from February last year.

New Statistics
Consumer price index, per 15 February 1999.
The statistics are published monthly in the Weekly Bulletin of Statistics. For more information, contact: Randi.Johannessen@ssb.no, tel. +47 21 09 47 30, or Berit.Koht@ssb.no, tel. +47 21 09 47 61.

Weekly Bulletin issue no. 11, 1999