Armenia
Official title
Consumer price index.
Scope
The index is compiled monthly and covers the whole population of
the Republic of Armenia.
Official base
For computation: December of the previous year = 100, previous
month = 100.
For publication: December of the previous year = 100, previous
month = 100; corresponding month of the previous year = 100,
corresponding period of the previous year = 100.
Sources of weights
The weights for the calculation of the CPI are derived from the
household budget survey and relate to the whole population. The
survey is carried out monthly and covers more than 1,000 rural and
urban households. The random sampling method is applied to
select households living in all regions of Armenia.
Previous year annual data are corrected in order to bring them up
together with the base prices of December of the previous year.
Weights and composition
| Major groups | Number of Items
| Weights
| Approx. No. of
price quotation
|
| Food | 118 | 60.5231 | ...
|
| Alcohol and tobacco | 19 | 6.0907 | ...
|
| Clothing and footwear | 73 | 7.5957 | ...
|
| Rents, fuel and power | 11 | 9.7178 | ...
|
| Household goods and equipment | 60 | 2.3998 | ...
|
| Pharmaceutical products and health services | 13 | 1.7969 | ...
|
| Transport and communication | 27 | 6.4525 | ...
|
| Leisure, culture and education | 39 | 2.0937 | ...
|
| Miscellaneous goods and services | 40 | 3.3297 | ...
|
| Total | 400 | 100.0000 | ...
|
Classification of individual consumption by purpose is adapted
with international standards and national requirements.
Household consumption expenditure
Household consumption expenditure refers to all financial
spending for the purchase of consumption goods and services. It
excludes taxes, duties, remittances, gifts and similar
disbursements.
Sample selection
The sample of geographical localities includes 10 settlement
where prices are collected. The outlets, of different types,
location and ownership, are selected according to the scope of
their assortment and turnover rate.
Method of data collection
Prices for 400 items are collected by price collectors from 9-12
outlets in each of 10 surveyed settlements. Price collection is
conducted between the 25th of the previous and 20th day of the
current month. During this period prices for each item are
collected three times: on 30th of the previous month, 10th and
20th of the current month. Average prices for all items are
computed for each ten days and then the average for the month.
The average price of electricity is computed as a weighted
average, using the weights representing volume of consumed
electric power by population. Gas and water prices are fixed by
the state. Price collection of medical, educational and
communication services is based on official tariffs of selected
establishments. Prices on transport services are collected in
the state and private establishments. Discounts, hire purchases
and second-hand prices are not taken into account in the index
calculation.
Housing
Owner-occupied housing is not included in the index.
Specification of varieties
The specifications of the items to be priced contain detail
characteristics such as quality, make, brand and unit of
measurement.
Substitution, quality changes
When one item disappears from the market for more than 3 months,
it is replaced with the variety of the same item which has the
same specifications as the first one. In such a case the price
collector should inform in advance the Price Division of the
Ministry of Statistics and should provide complete specification
of the new variety. In case of essential quality changes, the
new variety is considered as a new product. When new product
appears on the market, it is not observed until the end of the
year.
Seasonal items
In periods when an item is out of season, it is assumed that the
price follows the price movements of the other items in the same
sub-group.
Computation
CPI is computed according to the modified Laspeyres formula. The
index has been computed since December 1992.
Average prices are computed as weighted averages of prices
collected, using weights representing population share and retail
turnover of each region.
Other information
None.
Organisation and publication
National Statistical Office of the Republic of Armenia
Monthly analytical report Social and economic situation of the
Republic of Armenia
,
Monthly bulletin CPI in the Republic of Armenia