Consumer price index, 15 December 2004

The average index level of CPI was 113.3 (1998=100) in 2004, compared to 112.8 in 2003 - an annual growth of 0.4 per cent (the annual growth is an average of the monthly indices in 2004 compared to the corresponding average for 2003).

CPI was 113.8 per December 2004, a decrease from November of 0.2 per cent. In December 2003 the CPI was 112.6, which implies a year-to-year growth of 1.1 per cent. The year-to-year growth in CPI-ATE was 1.0 per cent in December, same as November.

Annual growth in consumer prices by 0.4 per cent

The CPI increased by 0.4 per cent from 2003 to 2004, which is the lowest annual growth since 1960. The price development of clothing and footwear was of the most important cause to the low price growth in 2004. The prices of clothing was on average 7.1 per cent lower in 2004 than in 2003, while the prices of footwear dropped somewhat less by 5.4 per cent. Gathered the prices decreased by 6.9 per cent, and continued thereby the negative price development in resent years. The price decline was nevertheless smaller compared to the previous year.

Tariffs on electricity were also an important factor behind the low price growth in 2004, with a fall of 8.8 per cent. The decline was in particular caused by the excessively high electricity prices in January 2003, which pulled up the average in 2003 considerably. In general the price course through 2004 was characterized by far less fluctuations than observed in 2003. CPI excluding electricity increased by 1.0 per cent from 2003 to 2004.

Passenger transport by air experienced a considerable price drop of 14.7 per cent from 2003 to 2004 and contributed to moderate the annual growth in the CPI. The prices of audiovisual equipment dropped as well and were on average 6.7 per cent lower in 2004 compared to 2003.

The price development connected to operation of personal transport equipment contributed to pull up the CPI in 2004. Especially petrol prices and the prices of maintenance and repair of personal transport equipment had an upward effect on the annual growth, with price increases from 2003 to 2004 of 6.0 and 3.1 per cent respectively.

Tobacco had a price increase of 19.3 per cent in 2004, which mainly can be ascribed to the tax increase in January same year. The cost of owner-occupied housing and rentals for housing along with food prices also contributed to the annual growth in CPI, all with price increases from 2003 to 2004 of approximately 2 per cent.

Throughout 2004 a number of services experienced increased prices compared to 2003. This was particularly the case for the prices of health services and educational expenses, which increased by 8.2 and 4.8 per cent respectively.

CPI adjusted for tax changes (CPI-AT) was unchanged from 2003 to 2004, implying that the tax changes were behind the whole growth in CPI. The annual growth in CPI-ATE was 0.3 per cent in 2004, while CPI excluding energy products (CPI-JE) increased by 0.8 per cent from 2003 to 2004.

Energy products pull down from November to December

The consumer prices went down by 0.2 per cent from November to December. The fall was among other things caused by price decrease of energy products. The petrol prices fell by 1.8 per cent, while the electricity tariffs went down by 1.1 per cent.

The price fall of telephone - and audiovisual equipment also pulled the CPI down. Some sales activity on clothing, furniture and household textiles also contributed to the fall inn the CPI.

Prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages went up by 0.4 per cent and dampened the decrease in the CPI. The prices of goods and services for maintenance and repair of dwelling rose by 0.8 per cent, whereof the services increased the most by 1.7 per cent.

New web tables

As of the publishing of the January index on 10 February 2005 there will be undertaken some changes in the CPI web tables. This implies among other things fewer web tables, but the figures will still be available in StatBank Norway.