The Central Statistical Office is pleased to announce the release of the Index of Retail Prices for the month of March 2023.
Index of Retail Prices
The All Items Index of Retail Prices calculated from the prices collected for the month of March 2023 was 122.8, representing a decrease of 0.3 points or 0.2% below the Index (All Items) for February 2023 as shown in the table attached.
The Index for Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages decreased from 147.8 in February 2023 to 146.1 in March 2023, reflecting a decrease of 1.2%. Contributing significantly to this decrease was the general downward movement in the prices of pumpkin, tomatoes, melon, hot peppers, cabbage, melongene, carrots, pimento, celery and parboiled rice. However, the full impact of these price decreases was offset by the general increases in the prices of chilled or frozen beef, fresh beef, chilled or frozen pork, cucumber, onions, oranges, table margarine, grapes, corn and plantains.
A further review of the data for March 2023 compared with February 2023 reflected an increase in the sub-index for Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco of 2.1%. Also, this period showed a decrease in the sub-index for Health of 0.3%. All other sections remained unchanged.
Inflation Rate
The Inflation Rate for March 2023 (measured as the percentage change in the average All Items Index for the period January to March 2023/January to March 2022) was 7.7%. This represents a decrease from 8.0% which was recorded in the previous period (January to February 2023/January to February 2022). The Inflation Rate for the comparative period (January to March 2022/January to March 2021) was 4.1%.