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WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2020
Azlan Othman
The Consumer Price Index (CPI)
in March 2020 increased by 1.6
per cent year-on-year compared
to March last year. Prices of food
and non-alcoholic beverages in-
creased by 1.1 per cent following
the increase in prices of meat (2.1
per cent); milk, dairy products and
eggs (1.6 per cent); vegetables
(19.9 per cent) as well as other
food products (1.4 per cent).
Meanwhile, non-food prices
increased by 1.8 per cent.
The CPI increase was largely
attributed to increases in the
prices and costs of miscellaneous
goods and services (10.9 per cent)
following the increase in prices
of other appliances, articles and
products for personal care; jew-
ellery, clocks and watches; other
personal effects; insurance; other
services as well as community and
family services.
Restaurants and hotels in-
creased by 4.8 per cent due to
the increase in prices of selected
food items in restaurants, cafes,
fast-food outlets as well as other
food services; and food and non-
alcoholic beverages (1.1 per cent)
due to increased prices of meat
(2.1 per cent); milk, dairy products
and eggs (1.6 per cent); vegeta-
bles (19.9 per cent) as well as oth-
er food products (1.4 per cent).
However, this was moderated
by the decrease in price of trans-
port (0.9 per cent) due to lower
prices of purchase of motor cars,
Consumer Price Index
increases by 1.6pc
Azlan Othman
The Department of Competition
and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) un-
der the Department of Economic
Planning & Statistics (JPES) re-
minded the public to be aware of
the potential associated risks when
entering into transactions with un-
known sellers, since a majority of
these sellers are individual resell-
ers or unregistered businesses,
which can make them challenging
to track.
Consumers are urged to be
vigilant by verifying the offers
and refrain from entering into the
transaction if in doubt or Žind the
prices to be unreasonable.
This was highlighted by the
DCCA in its latest guidelines
highlighting issues impact-
ing consumers and business-
es in Brunei Darussalam since
March 2020, as a result of the
COVID”19 outbreak.
Consumers
advised to be wary
of unknown sellers
On whether online busi-
nesses are also required to dis-
play the prices of their prod-
ucts, DCCA said the display of
prices regulations cover all busi-
nesses legally established and
registered with the Registry of
Companies and Business Names
(ROCBN), Ministry of Finance
and Economy.
Online businesses are not
excluded from the price display
regulations, to protect consumers
from being misled and to promote
transparency so that consumers
can make informed purchase
decisions before payment.
However, there is a distinction
between online business and
online marketing. An online
business offers a complete
business transaction online in
which payment can be made,
where a consumer engaging in
such a platform that will lead to a
contract with the business (buying
and selling).
Online marketing is a tool used
by businesses to advertise their
products. One way is through
social media.
The online posts are meant to
reach out and to inform consum-
ers. There are no retail transactions
involved, hence there is no legal
obligation to display prices. Indi-
viduals interested may contact the
sellers to inquire about the prices.
With the evolving market land-
scape andmore rapid pace in switch-
ing to e-commerce platform recently
due to the pandemic, the DCCA will
continue to study online business
consumer issues and provide up-
dates on relevant advisories.
bicycles, spare parts and acces-
sories of vehicles as well as fuel
and lubricants for vehicles; com-
munication (1.2 per cent) due to
decreased prices of telephone
and telefax equipment as well as
telephone and telefax services;
and clothing and footwear (0.7 per
cent) due to decrease in prices
of garments.
Prices of miscellaneous goods
and services increased mainly
due to a rise in prices of insur-
ance. Meanwhile, the increase in
the prices of restaurant and hotels
was due to an increase in the price
of catering services. The increase
in food and non-alcoholic bever-
ages was due to a rise in prices
of vegetables.
On a month-on-month basis,
the CPI in March 2020 increased by
0.3 per cent compared to January
2020. The Food and Non-Alcoholic
Beverages Index and the Non-Food
Index have both increased by 0.1
per cent and 0.4 per cent.
The CPI is a measure of price
changes of goods and services
paid by the consumer in a speci-
Žied period and compiled on a
monthly basis. The list of goods
and services in the CPI is based
on the average expenditure per
household from the Household
Expenditure Survey (HES). The
CPI full report for March 2020 is
available from the Department of
Economic Planning and Statistics
(JPES) website
FROM LEFT: Top three contributors to yearly changes; and the table shows the list of monthly and yearly price changes