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Consumer Prices Increased on Average by 1.0 percent in 2020

The average annual Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 1.0 percent in 2020 when compared to a year ago. There were increases in the first two quarters of 2020: 3.0 percent in the first quarter, followed by 2.1 percent in the second quarter. Meanwhile, there were declines of 0.4 percent and 0.7 percent in the last two quarters, respectively.

The 1.0 percent overall average inflation rate in 2020 is traced to the price uptrends in nine of the twelve divisions. The highest average inflation rates were communication (5.9%), food and non-alcoholic beverages (5.1%), education (4.2%), clothing and footwear (3.9%), health (2.3%), and household furnishings and equipment (1.6%). In comparison, the price index for housing and utilities comprise the highest weight in the CPI basket; however, the increase was 1.0 percent in 2020.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined by 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. The transport division recorded the lowest average price movement in the CPI basket (12.5%). This was due mainly to the 27.4 percent fall in passenger transport's average cost by air and the average price for fuels, which decreased by 13.5 percent. The cost of passenger transport by road also declined by 6.6 percent.

The index for housing and utilities moved up by 3.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020. The main contributors to this increase were electricity rates up by 11.6 percent, water supply up by 8.5 percent, and imputed rentals for owner-occupiers up by 3.1 percent.

More information from the Cayman Islands’ Consumer Price Index Report: October to December 2020 may be downloaded from www.eso.ky