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Consumer prices up slightly

Taiwan's consumer prices in April rose 0.22 percent from a year ago largely due to higher prices in alcohol and tobacco after the country's entry into the WTO, official data showed yesterday.

The March consumer price index (CPI) stood at 104.03 points (given the 1996 benchmark of 100), posting a rise for the third consecutive year, said the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

The figure was also 1.02 percent higher from the previous month as a result of the introduction of spring and summer clothing, and seasonal changes for fresh vegetables, the DGBAS said in a statement.

DGBAS statistics bureau director Chen Chang-shang (陳昌雄) said the latest consumer price data signaled an improvement on the demand side, even with seasonal factors involving the Lunar New Year and Taiwan's WTO entry taken into account.

When asked how any hike in water rates would impact consumer prices, Chen said a 10 percent increase would push CPI up by an extra 0.052 percentage points and wholesale price index (WPI) growth by 0.03 percentage points.

Taiwan last week imposed nationwide water restrictions to battle one of its worst droughts in decades.

Escalating concerns over severe water shortage, which also threatened the country's money-spinning high-tech companies, sent the Taiwan stock index plummeting 267.84 points or 4.5 percent to 5,642.48 yesterday.

Meanwhile, the WPI rose 0.50 percent from a year earlier to 96.28 (with a 1996 benchmark of 100), the first year-on-year rise since February 2001, Chen said.

The figure was also 0.91 percent higher compared to the previous month, he added. In the four months to April, the CPI rose 0.55 percent from a year earlier.
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