| 03.11.2020 – The consumer price index (CPI) remained stable in October 2020 compared with the previous month, remaining at 101.2 points (December 2015 = 100). Inflation was –0.6% compared with the same month of the previous year. These are the results of the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
The stability of the index compared with the previous month is the result of opposing trends that counterbalanced each other overall. Prices for clothing and footwear increased, as well as those for glasses and contact lenses. In contrast, prices for combined offers for fixed-line and mobile communication, as well as those for other fruits (melons and grapes) decreased. |
Switzerland Consumer Price Index (CPI) YoY, October 2020(see more posts on Switzerland Consumer Price Index, ) Source: investing.com - Click to enlarge |
Quality of results
The current pandemic affects all of society and the entire economy. In this difficult context, the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) must continue to provide public opinion, particularly the country’s decision makers and media, with reliable figures.
In October 2020, it was possible to collect all prices according to the survey plan with the exception of airfares, for which certain prices are still missing. For airfares, the price trend measured for those flights that could be ascertained was applied to missing flights from the same category, neutralising their impact on the results. With the exception of airfares, the quality of the price collection for the LIK in October meets the usual standards.
Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP)
In October 2020, the Swiss Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) stood at 100.45 points (base 2015 = 100). This corresponds to a rate of change of 0.0% compared with the previous month and of –0.9% compared with the same month the previous year. Due to the effects of the pandemic, the same missing price imputation techniques used for the CPI were introduced for the HICP.
The HICP is a supplementary indicator for inflation based on a harmonised method across EU member countries. It enables inflation in Switzerland to be compared with that of European countries.
The European Statistical Office, Eurostat, publishes the results according to a predefined calendar. The FSO publishes a comparison between inflation in Switzerland and Europe on the webpage www.ipch.bfs.admin.ch. A methodological note, the 2020 weighting of the Swiss standard HICP basket and the FSO News publication on the HICP are also available on this page. Eurostat will publish the HICP indices for other European countries for October 2020 on 18 November 2020. You will find the HICP results on the Eurostat website at the following address:
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/hicp
Download press release: Consumer prices remained stable in October
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