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Marty Offline OP
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Aug 2011 - Aug 2012 - Consumer Price Index Report

The Chamber recently received the August 2011 - August 2012 Consumer Price Index Report from the Statistical Institute of Belize. Here is a brief excerpt from the report: " Within the main food sub-categories, the most notable price increases were recorded for "Meat" (1.8%) and "Milk, Cheese & Eggs" (1/8%). These hikes were partly counter balanced by a 5.1% decrease in vegetable prices." Furthermore, the report stated " .. within the "housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels" category, there was a 14.8 decrease in the average prices of butane�"

For the first eight months of this year, Belize's average inflation rate was 1.7%. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 101.8 in August 2012 (February 2011 = 100), a 0.6% increase over the 101.2 recorded in August 2011. This increase was the result of higher prices of "Food and Non- Alcoholic Beverages" (↑0.5%), "Health" (↑6.8%), "Recreation and Culture" (↑5.0%), and "Miscellaneous Goods and Services" (↑4.1%). These increases were partially offset by price decreases in "Furnishing, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance" (↓1.9%), "Transport" (↓0.6%), "Education" (↓2.2%) and "Restaurants and Hotels" (↓0.7%).

Within the main food sub-categories, the most notable price increases were recorded for "Meat" (↑1.8%) and "Milk, Cheese and Eggs" (↑1.8%). These hikes were partly counterbalanced by a 5.1% decrease in vegetable prices.

Within the "Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels" category, there was a 14.8% decrease in the average price of butane (in Belmopan, for example, the average price of a 100 pound cylinder of butane fell from $126.40 to $104.22) but this was overshadowed by a 0.6% increase in the price of house rentals. Increases in hospital accommodation fees and surgery costs were the main causes of the upward movement of the "Health" index. The increase in the "Recreation and Culture" index reflected a 29.8% increase in the cost of admission to nightclubs. Under "Miscellaneous Goods and Services" higher prices for health (↑10.4%) and motor vehicle insurance (↑8.3%) accounted for the increase.

The decline in the "Transport" index was mostly due to lower prices for international airfares, which were largely offset by higher motor oil prices (↑11.2%). In Belize City, for instance, the average price of a quart of the Do It Best brand of 10W- 40 motor oil rose from $9.19 to $10.11. The decline in the "Furnishing, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance" index was as a result of lower prices for various non-durable household goods, including insecticides and fabric softener.

During the period under review, Orange Walk experienced the highest rate of inflation (↑2.4%), due to price increases in the "Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages", "Health" and "Recreation and Culture" categories. The lowest inflation rate occurred in Punta Gorda (↑0.1%), while Belize City (↓0.3%) and Belmopan (↓0.6%) recorded negative inflation rates.


Table 1: CPI by Major Categories and Percent Change August 2011-August 2012


Chart 1: Monthly CPI for All Items, Food and Fuel August 2011 - August 2012


Table 2: CPI by Municipality, August 2011 and August 2012


Table 3: Monthly change in CPI for Selected Categories of Goods August 2011 - August 2012


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Marty Offline OP
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Belize Consumer Price Index - September 2012

According to the Statistical Institute of Belize, between September 2011 and September 2012, the National Consumer Price Index for Belize increased from 101.5% to 102.0% yielding a point to point inflation rate of 0.5%. This change was mainly because of the high prices in the categories of "Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages" (+0.8%), "Health" (+6.8%), "Recreation and Culture" (+5.0%) and " Miscellaneous Goods and Service" (+4.1%) as noted in the infographic above.

Categories like "Education" (-2.2%) and "Furnishing, Household Equip. and Routine Household Maintenance" (-1.9%) saw a decrease in price making them both more affordable than the other items and services in the consumer's list.

The highest inflation rate was experienced in Orange Walk Town (+2.1%), followed by Dangriga Town (+1.3%) and San Ignacio/Santa Elena Town (+0.9%). The lowest rate was experienced in Belmopan City (-0.8%).


iBelmopan Blog


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Economic Indicators and how Consumer Price Index affects Retailers

Tonight in Economic Indicators we look at the question of inflation and how the Consumer Price Index affects Retailers. The Statistical Institute has released figures that show a relative high rate of inflation. The Consumer Price Index, a key measure of inflation released in October 2012, shows a one point seven percent increase for the first eight months of the year, that's a point six percent increase over the same period last year. Prices for food and healthcare rose significantly. In this segment, we look at how inflation affects retailers. High prices of oil, energy and commodities have a direct effect on retailers and their pricing strategy. At a time when the economy is already weak, retailers face the challenge of either increasing prices and taking the hit or absorbing the increased costs and sacrificing their profit margins.

Overall, inflation has a double impact on demand as each dollar buys less than it once did and consumers are spending less, which means that retail volumes fall into negative territory. As a consequence for retailers, a negative volume is particularly punishing. If sales are down, there is less capital to invest and less money to spend. While some retailers may have tried to keep their prices down and remain competitive, current inflationary pressures will have an unavoidable effect on pricing. Many manufacturers and retailers cannot afford to absorb past cost increases by offsetting them through cost savings elsewhere; or by lowering profit margins. The pressure of inflation limits their ability and willingness to reduce prices, creating a direct adverse effect on consumers who, faced with stagnant wages, have less to spend. At the same time, the added burden of high unemployment, is keeping a lid on pay growth. Overall, it is safe to say that thatCPIinflation is currently outpacing consumers' average earnings and growth and while the inflation rate increases, real pay falls sharply. In sum, demand weakness and competitive pressures alone are unlikely to be sufficient to hold down retail prices and price increases will ultimately be passed on to the consumers. The data suggests, therefore, that current inflationary pressures face a much stronger and further headwind and that is not good news for stressed-out consumers.

Channel 5


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POULTRY AND GAS PRICES RISE 9.5% - INFLATION TO DATE 1.5%

The Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) has released inflation rates for September 2012, indicating that, "At the end of September 2012, the average national year-to-date inflation rate was 1.5%, down from 1.7% the previous month."

Health, recreation and culture, and miscellaneous goods and services continue to drive the upward trend, with increases of 6.8%, 5% and 4.1%, respectively.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages saw a slight overall price increase of 0.8%; however, meat prices have spiked by 3.8% and poultry prices by 9.5%.

"Nationally, the average price for a pound of whole chicken went up 9.5% from $2.53 to $2.77," said the SIB report. "This was as a direct result of higher feed grain prices, as drought conditions in the Midwestern and Western United States have led to global grain shortages."

Gas prices increased as much as poultry prices: 9.5% overall, with the price of premium gasoline leading with a 13% increase.

Reporting on the September data, the SIB said that, "In Belize City, for example, the average price of a gallon of premium gasoline jumped from $11.48 to $12.97, while the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline rose from $11.05 to $11.95."

Again, Orange Walk has recorded the highest inflation rate, 2.1% this month as compared to 2.8% last month. The overall inflation rate in Belmopan has again dipped, this time by 0.8% as compared to 0.6% last month.

The SIB said, "There was virtually no change in the price level in Belize City and Punta Gorda Town�"

Amandala


Last edited by Marty; 10/20/12 07:02 AM.
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October 2012 Consumer Price Index for Belize

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for October 2012 stood at 102.1, up 0.8% from the corresponding month in 2011. This change was driven primarily by increases in the indices for "Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages" (↑1.0%), "Health" (↑6.8%), "Recreation and Culture" (↑5.0%), and "Miscellaneous Goods and Services" (↑4.1%). Among the goods and services contributing to these increases were: hospital accommodation, surgery, nightclub entertainment, and health and motor vehicle insurance. The average national inflation rate as of the end of October 2012 was 1.4%, a slight decrease from the 1.5% recorded in the previous month.

As in September, the increase in the food index was driven by higher prices of meat products (↑4.1%). The average price of a pound of whole chicken, for example, rose by 9.2% from $2.51 to $2.74. The "Fish and Seafood" index rose by 5.7% mainly as a result of higher shrimp prices. In contrast, vegetables prices declined by an average of 3.5%, with cabbage, sweet peppers and tomatoes recording the most significant decreases.

The cost of transportation remained virtually unchanged, as higher prices for fuels and lubricants were completely offset by lower international airfares. In the case of fuel, the average price of premium gasoline jumped by 20.0% from $10.84 to $13.01 per gallon while that of diesel increased by 12.0% from $9.97 to $11.17 per gallon.

Among the seven municipalities, the rate of inflation was highest in Orange Walk Town (↑2.6%), owing to price increases in "Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages", "Health" and "Recreation and Culture". Belmopan, on the other hand, recorded a 0.3% decrease, due to lower prices in the categories of "Furnishing and Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance" and "Clothing and Footwear".


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Marty Offline OP
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Consumer Price Index shows prices up by eight percent

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for October 2012 has been released. It shows that prices went up by point eight percent over the same period last year. The biggest increase was in health, which went up by six point eight percent and trailing behind were Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages, which went up by one point percent, Recreation and Culture by five percent as well as Miscellaneous Goods and Services went up by four point one percent. Among the goods and services contributing to these increases were: hospital accommodation, surgery, nightclub entertainment, and health and motor vehicle insurance. The average national inflation rate as of the end of October 2012 was down by one point four percent. The food index was driven by higher prices of meat products. The average price of a pound of whole chicken increased by nine point two percent, Fish and Seafood rose by five point seven percent. But vegetables declined by an average of three point five percent with cabbage, sweet peppers and tomatoes recording the most significant decreases. The cost of transportation remained the same, as higher prices for fuel and lubricants were offset by lower international airfares. In the case of fuel, the average price of premium gasoline jumped by twenty percent to thirteen dollars and one cent per gallon while diesel increased by twelve percent to eleven dollars and seventeen cents per gallon.

Channel 5



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