An increase in the CPI means an increase in the costs of the commodities purchased by CNMI households.
This means that since 2000, the base year, the value of the dollar in the CNMI has shrunk each year.
Of the nine basic categories used for measuring the consumer price index in the CNMI on a quarterly basis, the cost of housing and transportation topped the list for the items with the highest increases from 2000 to 2009.
The latest data released by the statistics division of the CNMI Department of Commerce posted a steady CPI increase for housing and utilities — from the 67.5 percentage points for the first quarter of 2000 to 108 percentage points for the last quarter of 2009.
The CPI for transportation started at 92.8 percentage points and steadily went up until it reached 108.5 percentage points.
The CPI for alcoholic beverages started at 95.9 percentage points for the first quarter in 2003. It increased to 106.5 for the last quarter of 2009. The CPI for food was 93.7 percentage points in 2000. Last year’s fourth quarter showed that it had reached 106.1 percentage points.
Medical care went up from 78 percentage points in 2000 to 101.5 in 2009. Recreation was 101.9 in 2003 which increased to 105.1 last year. The CPI for other goods and services in 2003 was 92.9 percentage points. It went up to 102.8 in 2009.
Only the CPI for apparel, education and communication decreased. CPI for apparel went down to 104.3 percentage points in 2009. It was 107 in the first quarter of 2000.
Education and communication was 98.7 in 2003.Last year’s fourth quarter reports showed that it decreased to 95.6
The CPI measures price changes in a sample of goods and services purchased by households, and it is based on the concept of a representative “market basket,” or a sample of goods and services that households purchase.
From 2000 to 2002, the consumer price index had five categories: food, housing utilities, apparel, transportation, and medical care.
In 2003, the statistics division added four more categories — alcoholic beverages, recreation, education communication, and another category for other goods and services.
The 82.4 percentage points in the consumer price index rates for all items in the first quarter of 2000 rose to 105.6 in the fourth quarter of 2009.
The first CPI was developed in 1977 and was re-based in 2003 and 2008.
Each month, over 1,000 price quotations are collected for more than 160 items under the nine major groups to compute the CPI.
These price quotations come from about 280 establishments including major retail outlets and grocery stores to a variety of services such as gas distributors, restaurants and government utility offices.
The statistics division determines the actual movements of prices based on the previous prices.
Commerce Secretary Michael Ada said the division conducted an internal review of the collection and calculation processes to ensure that quality indexes were fairly presented.
He said the division also hired an independent CPI expert to review the process for quality assurance.
A copy of the CPI reports can be accessed at www.commerce.gov.mp.
