Hong Kong May Headline Inflation Steady at 2.0%; Below Expectations

Hong Kong's composite consumer-price index rose at a slower-than-expected 2.0% in May from a year earlier amid steady local costs and limited external price pressure, the Census and Statistics Department said Tuesday.

May's CPI rise was the same as April's 2.0% rise, but was below the median 2.2% rise forecast by five economists surveyed earlier by Dow Jones Newswires. A government spokesman said the upside risk to inflation should remain contained in the coming months due to the moderate price pressure.

The Hong Kong government said in its most recent forecast last month that it expects headline CPI to rise by 1.8% this year, moderating from the 2.4% increase in 2016.

Write to Chester Yung at chester.yung@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 20, 2017 04:58 ET (08:58 GMT)