Nuku’alofa, Tonga – March 31, 2025 – The Tonga Statistics Department (TSD) officially launched the rebased Consumer Price Index (CPI) 2021, a crucial economic indicator reflecting the current consumption patterns of households in Tonga. The launch event, attended by key stakeholders, marked the extensive efforts to update and enhance the accuracy of Tonga’s inflation measurement.
It emphasized the significance of the CPI and inflation for Tonga, stating, “The CPI is not merely a set of numbers; it is a vital tool that directly impacts the lives of the people in Tonga.”
The CPI is a measurement of the changes of consumer goods prices over time. It supports government and stakeholders in making informed decisions.
The rebased CPI 2021 incorporates an updated “basket” of goods and services, reflecting recent Tongan spending habits.
The rebase was informed by a comprehensive Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) conducted in 2021. It is important to note that the 2021 HIES results are heavily influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, which significantly altered consumption patterns.
The Government Statistician and the CEO of TSD, Mr. Sione Lolohea emphasized the importance of the HIES in updating consumption patterns and highlighted the challenges of public engagement with statistical data.
Key Findings:
- In January 2025, the annual inflation rate was 5.4%. The local goods saw a price growth of 7.1% compared to imported goods which grew by 3.5%. The major drivers of inflation were local and imported food products, local tobacco and kava, and imported non-alcoholic beverages.
- The new CPI 2021 shows a similar inflation trend to the previous CPI 2015, with some deviations, particularly after November 2024, where the new CPI showed a higher inflation after the fall in October 2024.
- Expenditure on food consumed away from home increased considerably over time, also concerning is their share in total expenditure. The new weights for all the products in the CPI 2021 basket reflect this change in expenditure by households in Tonga.
TSD also stressed the crucial role of household data collection, calling for public participation in surveys to ensure the CPI accurately reflects the realities of life in Tonga. “The accuracy of the CPI depends on the quality of the data collected. Your cooperation in providing honest and detailed information is essential for producing reliable statistics”.
TSD expressed gratitude to all contributors, the people of Tonga, data collectors/enumerators, staff and partner organizations such as the World Bank, SPC and Statistics New Zealand, who have helped to review this work, for their invaluable contributions to this significant project.
For further information or inquiries, please contact: Telekaki Latavao, Head of the Economic Division – Tonga Statistics Department