Analyzing the consumer price index for October 2022, it is noteworthy that the groups with the greatest contribution were Miscellaneous Goods and Services (0.90%), Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages (0.29%), Restaurants and Hotels (0.46%), Transportation (0.17%), Housing (0.20%) and Furniture and Household Items (0.41%).
SANTO DOMINGO- The Central Bank reported yesterday that the consumer price index (CPI) reflected a variation of 0.28% last October and indicated that for three consecutive months it was below the threshold of 0.30%, and that the accumulated inflation from January-October 2022 is 6.31%.
Regarding year-on-year inflation, measured from October 2021 to October 2022, the monetary authority said it maintains a downward trajectory, standing at 8.24% in October, "a drop of 140 basis points compared to the peak of 9.64% observed in April of this year," explained the Central Bank, confirming its forecast that inflation will be around 7% by the end of 2022.
"This downward trend in inflation allows us to project that inflation will be converging towards the target range of 4% ± 1% before the end of the second quarter of next year, 2023," the institution stated, a result of the effectiveness of the timely measures adopted to mitigate price growth, which demonstrates that the monetary policy transmission mechanism is operating.
He added that the government's fuel subsidies, the pause in electricity rate adjustments, and initiatives to reduce agricultural production costs have also had an impact.
By groups
When analyzing the consumer price index for the month of October 2022, it is highlighted that the groups with the greatest contribution were Miscellaneous Goods and Services, growing 0.90%, Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages (0.29%), Restaurants and Hotels (0.46%), Transportation (0.17%), Housing (0.20%) and Furniture and Household Items (0.41%).
The CPI for the Miscellaneous Goods and Services group, which has the greatest impact on the overall CPI result, grew by 0.90%, mainly due to price increases recorded in health insurance (5.75%), personal care services (0.75%), personal care items (0.79%) and the holding of events (3.56%).
The Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages group index registered a moderate variation of 0.29%, mainly explained by the price increases observed in green plantains (3.83%), green pigeon peas (8.78%), tomatoes (10.59%), chili peppers (5.63%), sweet potatoes (7.53%), yautía (7.28%), ripe plantains (3.47%), pork (0.91%), soft drinks (0.77%), potatoes (2.54%) and chicken broth (1.09%).
It was also noted that other food items saw price decreases, such as fresh chicken (-2.82%), avocados (-5.14%), eggs (-1.01%), and garlic (-4.16%). It is important to highlight that the significant negative impact of the chicken price change contributed to lower inflation in the Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages CPI group in October 2022.
The 0.46% growth in the CPI for the Restaurants and Hotels group is mainly due to the rise in prices of food services prepared outside the home such as the dish of the day (0.39%), chicken service (0.68%), grocery service with side dishes (0.21%), empanadas (0.86%), sandwiches (0.51%) and juice served outside the home (0.65%).
The East region has the highest inflation.
The results of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) by geographic region show that the index for the Ozama region, which includes the National District and Santo Domingo province, varied by 0.19%, the North region by 0.36%, the East region by 0.42%, and the South region by 0.25%. The greater variation recorded in the CPI for the East region is mainly explained by the greater impact of the Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages group in that geographic area.
By socioeconomic strata
The behavior of the price index by socioeconomic strata shows that the lowest income quintiles registered variations of 0.36% in quintiles 1 and 2, 0.32% in quintile 3, mainly due to increases in the price indices of the Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages group, land transport services and the Miscellaneous Goods and Services group.
As for the highest income quintiles (4 and 5), these yielded inflation rates of 0.32% and 0.22% respectively, as a result of the growth of the price indices of the Miscellaneous Goods and Services and Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages groups.
