Consumer Price Index for June

31.JULY.08

June 2008

During the month of June, 2008, the Consumer Price Index registered a 0.7 percent increase. The “All items” index stood at 132.3 compared with 131.4 for the previous month. The “point-to-point” inflation rate was recorded at 10.9 percent.{{more}}

Six (6) groups recorded price increases during the month, namely; “Food” (0.8 percent), “Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco” (0.2 percent), “Clothing and Footwear” (0.5 percent), “Fuel and Light” (4.1 percent), “Household Furniture and Supplies” (0.4 percent) and “Personal Services” (0.2 percent). The other groups “Housing”, “Medical Care and Expenses”, “Transportation and Communication”, “Education” and “Miscellaneous” remained unchanged.

The 0.8 percent increase in the “Food” index reflected higher prices for several items, namely; loose rice (47.1 percent), pawpaw (31.9 percent), tomatoes (26.4 percent), carrots (19.6 percent), packaged rice (17.7 percent), pumpkins (14.6 percent), cabbages (11.6 percent), table margarine (6.0 percent), sweet peppers (5.8 percent), whole legs (5.8 percent), cooking oil (4.9 percent), cucumbers (3.6 percent) and chicken backs (3.3 percent).

The “Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco” index grew by 0.2 percent due to higher prices for beer (2.9 percent) and stout (0.4 percent).

The 0.5 percent increase in the “Clothing and Footwear” index is attributed to increased price for linen material (23.2 percent), while, the growth in the “Household Furniture and Supplies” index is attributed to increased price for dishwashing liquid (5.5 percent).

The “Fuel and Light” index grew by 4.1 percent as the cost of electricity increased by (9.8 percent) due to a higher fuel surcharge for the month of May, 2008. Similarly, the group “Personal Services” rose by 0.2 percent as a result of increased price for sanitary napkins (4.5).