Lowest income group sees 1.1% decline in index

Data from the Singapore Department of Statistics showed that All-Items Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the lowest 20 per cent income group fell by 1.1 per cent, while that for the middle and highest income groups each saw a decline of 0.5 per cent.

In terms of price declines, the lowest income group was the only segment to experience a drop in the cost of healthcare services last year, while accommodation costs and electricity tariffs fell 4.1 per cent for them.

The greatest price increases for them were in education and food, which rose 2.4 per cent and 2 per cent, respectively.

Dr Tan Khay Boon, senior lecturer at SIM Global Education, said: “It is good to know that the lowest 20 per cent income group encountered the largest decline in the CPI-All items relative to the middle and highest income groups ... This means their real income actually increases which helps to improve the income distribution in real terms.”