Here comes the new Istat basket for calculating inflation. In 2012 the E-book reader, the E-book download and the civil mediation enter. There are also novelties in the gaming segment, for example with the introduction of “scratch cards”. This was communicated by the statistical institute itself, explaining that the 2012 basket is made up of 1.398 products, aggregated in 597 representative positions (591 in 2011), on which the relative consumer price indices are calculated on a monthly basis.
In 2012, 84 provincial capital municipalities contribute to the calculation of the indices (there were 85 in 2011). Overall, the price quotations surveyed each month amount to 591.000, of which 511.000 collected in the area through the use of Tablet PCs and sent to Istat by the municipal statistics offices and 80.000 surveyed directly by Istat.
The changes in the weighting structure, which are also affected by the recent revision of the National Accounts estimates, show for the consumer price index for the entire national community an increase in the relative weight of the expenditure divisions Other goods and services, Housing, water, electricity and fuels, Recreation, entertainment and culture, Alcoholic beverages and tobacco, Clothing and footwear, Transport and Education. The most significant decreases in absolute terms, on the other hand, concern the Health services and health expenditure and Hospitality and restaurant services divisions.
