Hong Kong's inflation to edge lower only gradually: Standard Chartered

Quotes from Standard Chartered:

-Hong Kong will announce January inflation numbers on 23 February. We expect headline inflation to come in at 4.8% y/y, down marginally from 4.9% in December. Lower oil prices were likely the main source of downside pressure, offset by still-strong upward price pressure on food and housing.

-Utility prices account for only about 3% of the CPI basket, and transportation accounts for 8.4%. In contrast, food and housing account for 27% and 32%, respectively.

-Wage expectations are running high thanks to a still-tight labour market - the January unemployment rate was steady at 3.3%, close to full employment. We expect any further easing in headline CPI inflation to be mild in 2015.