Switzerland Consumer Price Index (CPI) y/y

Switzerland's Consumer Price Index (CPI) y/y demonstrates changes in prices for 700 main consumer goods and services, in the specified month compared to the same month of the previous year. The value indicates price changes from the consumer perspective. The index shows how much consumers have to increase or decrease their spending in order to maintain the same volume of consumption.

The CPI reflects not an absolute, but a relative change in consumer inflation compared to the base year. Current base year is 2015 with the index value set to 100. Thus, if the current index value is 110 points, this means that prices have risen by 10% since 2015. The consumer basket is revised on a regular basis to take account of changes in product ranges.

The calculation covers every segment of private consumption such as food, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, clothing, rents, routine household maintenance, health care, telecommunication services, leisure, etc. The following are not regarded as consumption: direct taxes, social security contributions including the compulsory health insurance, as well as expenditure on investments and savings.

The index is calculated based on a sample of some 80, 000 prices collected monthly from sales outlets. The survey coverage includes about 2,700 different sales outlets throughout Switzerland, ranging from small shops to large retail chains and malls.

The Consumer Price Index is the main indicator of consumer inflation in the country. In turn, the inflation is the key factor affecting the SNB's interest rate decision. Therefore, the CPI growth usually leads to an increase in Swiss franc quotes.