Largest Rise in Capital Goods Prices since 2000

Largest Annual Rise in Capital Goods Prices since 2000

On an annual basis, the Capital Goods Price Index (CGPI) rose 4.1 percent in the year to the September 2004 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand. This is the largest annual increase in the CGPI since a rise of 4.8 percent from the December 1999 quarter to the December 2000 quarter.

From the June 2004 quarter to the September 2004 quarter, the CGPI rose 0.6 percent. This follows on from a 1.5 percent increase in the June 2004 quarter.

The most significant contribution to the overall increase for the September 2004 quarter came from a 2.0 percent increase in the residential buildings index. The main reason cited by respondents for this quarter's increase was higher prices for construction components.

This is the eighth consecutive quarter in which the residential buildings index has been the most significant upward contributor to the CGPI. In the year to the September 2004 quarter, the residential buildings index rose by 10.2 percent. Another upward contribution in the September 2004 quarter came from the non-residential buildings index (up 1.5 percent), after a rise of 4.1 percent in the June 2004 quarter.

The plant, machinery and equipment index decreased 0.8 percent in the September 2004 quarter. A 3.6 percent fall in the computer machinery index was the most significant contributor to the decrease recorded in this index in the quarter.

Brian Pink

Government Statistician

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