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3249
Cars softened the reduction in consumption in March
statistikk
2009-04-30T10:00:00.000Z
Wholesale and retail trade and service activities;Income and consumption;National accounts and business cycles
en
vki, Index of household consumption of goods, volume index, household consumption (for example car purchase, food consumption, electricity consumption)Wholesale and retail trade , Consumption, National accounts , Income and consumption, National accounts and business cycles, Wholesale and retail trade and service activities
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Index of household consumption of goods, March 2009

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Cars softened the reduction in consumption in March

According to seasonally-adjusted figures, household consumption of goods fell by 0.3 per cent from February to March 2009. Excluding consumption of cars, the index decreased by 1 per cent.

According to seasonally-adjusted figures, there was an increase of 4.4 per cent of purchases of vehicles and petrol in March 2009 compared with February 2009. This was the only group of goods with an increase in consumption from February to March this year. When compared with last year, the consumption of cars and petrol in March 2009 was 13.2 per cent lower than in March 2008.

The consumption of electricity and heating fuels decreased by 5 per cent from February to March according to seasonally-adjusted figures. This group of goods contributed with 0.4 percentage points towards the reduction in total consumption.

Overall, households’ consumption of food, beverages and tobacco remained almost unchanged compared with the previous month. Viewed separately, there was a small decrease in the consumption of food, whereas the consumption of tobacco and non-alcoholic beverages was slightly higher than in February.

Consumption of the goods in the group “other goods” showed a reduction of 0.9 per cent from February to March. Except for books and telecommunication equipment, there was a decrease in all the components in this group. The consumption of books remained unchanged, and there was a small increase in the consumption of telecommunication equipment.

The unadjusted volume index shows that the households’ consumption of goods was 1.3 per cent lower in March 2009, compared with the same month in the previous year. Only the group “other goods” showed a higher consumption in March 2009 than in March 2008.

Method differs from the index of retail sales

The index of household consumption of goods describes the development in household consumption, while the index of retail sales measures the development in retail sales. Compared to the index of retail sales, the index of household consumption of goods has a wider selection of goods. The calculation of the index of household consumption of goods is based on information from the index of retail sales, plus purchases of cars (initial registration) and consumption of electricity and heating fuels. This may result in deviations in the development of the two indices. Additionally, it should be borne in mind that the “Standard Industrial Classification” changed on 1 January 2009, which inter alia means that petrol stations from then onwards are a part of retail sales.

The index of household consumption of goods uses the same definitions and methods of compilation as the quarterly national accounts, and thus serves as an indicator of household consumption in the quarterly national accounts.

Since Statistics Norway gives a high priority to timeliness in the release of statistics, the index of household consumption of goods may have to rely on preliminary estimates in some cases. This means that such estimates will be replaced in subsequent releases. As regards the seasonally-adjusted figures, the figures for previous periods may be revised when a new observation is added to the series of raw data.

Index of household consumption of goods, March 2009. Sesonally adjusted and unadjusted volume indices. March 2008-March 2009. 1995=1001
Period Sesonally adjusted Change from previous month.
Per cent 		Unadjusted Change from the same month
last year. Per cent
2008        
March  152.1 1.2  140.4 -5.1
April  149.7 -1.6  146.4 11.8
May  151.2 1.0  149.8 2.7
June  149.3 -1.2  152.3 -3.6
July  147.3 -1.4  150.6 1.1
August  147.2 -0.1  147.5 -3.9
September  147.1 -0.1  141.7 0.1
October  145.1 -1.4  145.3 -3.5
November  145.4 0.2  144.3 -7.3
December  146.8 1.0  190.5 -0.1
         
2009        
January  143.8 -2.1  137.5 -3.3
February  144.8 0.7  125.9 -7.9
March  144.5 -0.3  138.6 -1.3
1  Please note that the indices have been revised.