Taipei, Feb. 6 (CNA) Consumer prices in January increased 0.88 percent in January from the same period last year due largely to a spike in the prices of tobacco, fuel, vegetables, dairy and meat products, and medical services, government statistics showed Tuesday.

However, the consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.35 percent from the previous month, and after seasonal adjustments the monthly decline was 0.23 percent, according to the data from the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

In January, food prices rose 0.82 percent from a year earlier, with the prices of vegetables, dairy, grains and meat increasing 25.04 percent, 5.03 percent, 3.11 percent and 2.85 percent, respectively.

The price of fruits, meanwhile, fell 27.43 percent in reflection of a relatively high comparison base over the same period last year, offsetting the increase in food prices, the DGBAS said.

The core CPI, which excludes fruits, vegetables and energy, rose 0.82 percent year-on-year in January, the DGBAS said.

The cost of a basket of 17 government-monitored household necessities, including rice, pork, bread, eggs, sugar, cooking oil, shampoo and toilet paper, rose 3.27 percent in January from a year earlier, the biggest year-on-year increase in 35 months, according to the DGBAS.

In January, the wholesale price index (WPI) fell 0.74 percent from a year earlier, but the domestic sales price index, excluding imports, rose 2.19 percent year-on-year, the DGBAS data showed.

Meanwhile, the import price index in Taiwan dollar terms fell 0.28 percent, while the export price index fell 3.44 percent year-on-year, according to the DGBAS.

(By Chen Cheng-wei and Evelyn Kao)
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