Shoppers had to dig deeper into their pockets for household furnishings and food last year, as costs of these and other items drove the average consumer price index 3.8% higher than in 2022.
New data from the Economics and Statistics Office, released last week, showed that the average CPI in 2023 was 131.0, which represented an increase in the overall index, which was 126.1 the previous year.
The increase was driven mainly by higher prices for household furnishings and equipment, food and non-alcoholic beverages, housing and utilities, clothing and footwear, alcoholic beverages and tobacco, and restaurants and hotels, according to the ESO.
In the fourth quarter of 2023 alone, the CPI was 132.5, which the ESO said was higher by 3.6% compared to the same period in 2022.
Ten out of the 12 CPI divisions recorded higher prices by the end of 2023, the ESO said.
Furnishings, household equipment, and routine household maintenance had the greatest jump in the fourth quarter at 9.3%.
The rise in this division’s index was “traced mainly to the 27.3 percent increase in glassware, tableware and household utensils. Notably, the index for repair of household appliances and small electric household appliances each increased by 21.0 and 19.2 percent, respectively,” the ESO said.
The average price of furniture and furnishings also significantly increased by 14.3% over 2022, the ESO reported.
Household textiles increased by 8.2%, major household appliances by 2.2%, non-durable household goods by 8.8%, and small tools and miscellaneous accessories by 0.7%.
Employed staff who were paid staff privately employed had no observable changes, the ESO added.
Rent increased by 12.8%
For housing and utilities, the ESO recorded a 5.9% increase over 2022.
A 12.8% increase in the price of actual rentals paid by tenants pushed this division up in 2023.
“Materials for the maintenance and repair of dwelling also went up with a 6.6 percent increase, while services for the maintenance and repair of dwelling increased by 4.2 percent. Water supply and electricity both went up by 4.9 and 4.4 percent, respectively. Imputed rentals for owner-occupiers went up by 2.9 percent,” according to the ESO.
Additionally, the average price of gas (LPG/propane) increased by 2.0% in 2023, the ESO said.
When it came to transport, there was a 4.1% increase recorded in this index, which the ESO said was due to a significant increase of 13.4% for motor vehicles.
“The price of spare parts and accessories for personal transport equipment also contributed to the upward movement of this division’s index with a 9.1 percent increase,” the ESO said, adding that the price of fuels and other services for personal transport equipment both declined by 1.0% and 7.1%, respectively.
Passenger transport by air went up by 4.5%, as did maintenance and repair of personal transport equipment, which increased by 5.4%, the ESO said.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages decreased by 0.6%, mainly due to a 9.7% fall in the average price of vegetables.
The index for tea, coffee and cocoa also experienced a significant fall of 8.2%, the ESO said, adding that the average prices for fish and seafood, and fruits also decreased by 5.9% and 5.0%, respectively, when compared to the same period in 2022.
However, the ESO said a significant increase of 17.8% in oils and fats counteracted these declines.
Sugar, sugar confectionary and snacks went up by 11.9% and the cost of bread and cereal increased by 2.7%.
However, the price of milk, cheese, and eggs fell by 4.0%.
“Mineral waters, soft drinks, fruit and vegetable juices increased by 3.7 percent, alongside other food products (not elsewhere specified) and meat and meat products, which moved up by 4.4 and 1.3 percent, respectively,” the ESO report stated.
Read full Economics and Statistics consumer price index report here.
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