Consumer price index, 15 December 2001

From 15 November to 15 December 2001 the Consumer Prices increased by 0.2 per cent. The year-to-year growth in December was 2.1 per cent. The CPI was 108.9 (1998=100) in December 2001, compared with 106.7 in December 2000.

Annual growth 2001: Strong increase in the tariffs on electricity

The CPI rose by 3.0 per cent from 2000 to 2001. The main contribution to the growth is the strong increase in the tariffs on electricity. The tariffs on electricity have on average increased by 27.9 per cent in 2001. The tariffs on electricity normally show a seasonal pattern with a decrease in spring and an increase during autumn, but in 2001 this was not the case. The tariffs on electricity experienced a considerable rise in January and continued to increase during the following months, until they reached a peak in July and August. The tariffs leveled out during the last four months. The CPI excluding electricity rose by 2.1 per cent during 2001. A rise in the housing expenses was another important contribution to the growth in the CPI from 2000 to 2001. Rentals for housing and the costs for owner-occupied housing experienced an increase during 2001 of 3.9 and 4.3 per cent respectively.

The prices on transport services increased by 10.4 per cent in 2001. The prices on passenger transport by air experienced the largest growth with 19.6 per cent. Passenger transport by road went up 8.8 per cent.

The petrol prices, on the other hand, contributed to moderate the rise in the consumer price growth in 2001. The petrol prices fell on average by 8.2 per cent from 2000 to 2001 due to reductions in the taxes of petrol and the development in the prices of petroleum. The petrol prices fluctuated throughout the first months of 2001, but fell considerably during the last six months of the year. During 2001 the CPI excluding energy products (CPI-AE) increased by 2.4 per cent.

The prices on alcoholic beverages and tobacco went up 3.4 per cent in 2001. At the beginning of 2001 there were only marginal tax changes on alcohol, and the special duty on tobacco was only adjusted for expected inflation.

Due to a reduction in the value added tax, the prices on food and non-alcoholic beverages fell by 1.9 per cent during 2001. From June to December the prices declined by 9.4 per cent.

The prices on clothing and footwear went down by 0.8 per cent in 2001. The prices on footwear experienced a stronger decline than the prices on clothing. The prices on clothing have indicated a falling tendency since the second half of the 1990s. The prices on footwear, on the other hand, fell by 3.3 per cent and have therefore shown a different development in 2001 than in previous years.

In addition to the decline in the prices of petrol, food, non-alcoholic beverages, clothing and footwear, lower prices of audiovisual equipment and telephone products have contributed to dampen the growth in the consumer prices in 2001.

The CPI adjusted for tax changes (CPI-AT) increased by 3.2 per cent. The tax changes pulled the growth in the CPI down by 0.2 percentage points. This is a result of a reduction in the value added taxes on food and the taxes on petrol. The increase in the overall value added taxes and the taxes on electricity at the turn of the year pulled in the opposite direction. The CPI-ATE went up by 2.6 per cent in 2001.

Price change from November to December: Consumer prices up by 0.2 per cent

An increase in the housing expenses was the main contribution to the increase in the CPI from November to December. Rentals for housing and the costs for owner-occupied housing went up by 0.7 and 1.1 per cent respectively. The tariffs on electricity fell slightly in December.

The prices on transport services have increased by 1.4 per cent in December. The prices on passenger transport by air went up 3.4 per cent due to higher insurance for the air companies. There were also registered an increase in taxi fees in December. The prices on petrol fell by 1.2 per cent and contributed to offset the growth in the CPI from November to December.

The prices on food went up by 0.5 per cent in December due to a seasonal increase in the prices of fresh vegetables.

Year-to-year change

The year-to-year change in the CPI rose from 1.8 per cent in November to 2.1 per cent in December. This increase is mainly due to the price development in the transport sector and housing expenses. The prices on transport services rose by 1.4 per cent in December 2001, in contrast to December 2000 when the prices remained unchanged. The prices on petrol showed a slighter decline in December 2001 compared to December 2000. Rentals for housing and the costs for owner-occupied housing increased in December 2001 in comparison to no change in December 2000. A smaller decrease in the prices of audiovisual equipment in December 2001 compared to December 2000 also contributed to the increase in the consumer prices. The price development on clothing, on the other hand, pulled in the opposite direction.

The year-to-year change in the CPI-AT increased from 2.5 per cent in November to 2.7 per cent in December. The CPI-ATE went up by 2.7 per cent.