Jamaica’s inflation moderated slightly in January this year, according to data released by Statistical Institute of Jamaica (Statin) compared with the December 2013 inflation rate.
Statin says that the inflation recorded by the All Jamaica Consumer Price Index was 0.5 per cent. Jamaica’s inflation rate for December 2013 was put at 0.6 percent by Statin in an earlier report released in January.
All divisions recorded an inflation rate below 1.0 per cent, with the exception of ‘Furnishings, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance’, which recorded an increase of 2.9 per cent. This movement was due mainly to the increase of approximately 12.0 per cent in the National Minimum Wage which took effect on January. The highest weighted division, ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages’ moved up by 0.4 per cent a slightly lower movement than the 0.5 per cent recorded for December 2013, as lower prices were paid for vegetables and starchy foods.
The upward movement in the index recorded for the divisions for January were as follows: ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages’ which moved up by 0.4 per cent, ‘Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco’ 0.1 per cent, ‘Clothing and Footwear’ 0.2 per cent, ‘Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels’0.7 per cent, ‘Health 0.3 per cent, ‘Transport’ 0.1 per cent. ‘Recreation and Culture’ 0.1 per cent, ‘Restaurants and Accommodation Services’ 0.5 per cent, ‘Miscellaneous Goods and Services’ 0.7 per cent, ‘Education’ and ‘Communication’ recorded negligible movement for the period under review the release stated.
The Index advanced in all three regions: Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area (GKMA) 0.6 per cent, Other Urban Centres (OUC) 0.4 per cent and Rural Areas, 0.5 per cent.
[…] posts | Inflation moderates slightly | 2013 inflation 9.7%, worse than […]