Food prices see biggest annual increase in three years

Friday 21 July 2017

The latest stats show the price of food in Jersey has gone up by the largest amount in the last three years – although the prices of fresh fruit and vegetables have fallen on the last quarter.

At 2%, this annual increase in food prices is the highest recorded since March 2014.

The figures were revealed in the Statistics Unit’s Retail Price Index (RPI) report, published today. The RPI now stands at 2.5%, which, compared with last quarter’s 2.9%, means that inflation is now increasing at a slower pace.

Pictured: Jersey RPI annual inflation rate (percent) March 2000 to June 2017. (Statistics Unit)

The RPI is designed to give an accurate assessment of whether prices are going up and down and overall, they have gone up in the last year, but at a slower rate than last quarter.

Jersey’s RPI is measured by collecting over 500 goods and services purchased by an average household, which are then sorted into 14 categories, including food, tobacco and motoring. Based on the Statistics Unit’s Household Expenditure Survey, these categories are then assigned different ‘weights’ which indicate their significance in an average household to determine how much or how little they contribute to the overall RPI.

Pictured: Infographic supplied by Jersey's Statistics Unit explaining the recently published RPI report. (Statistics Unit)

The groups which contributed the most to the latest RPI were ‘Household services’, which includes school fees, postal charges, telephone charges and other domestic services, and ‘Motoring’, which includes insurance and the purchase and service of vehicles.

The average prices of both petrol and diesel were nine pence per litre higher in June 2017 than last year.

The cost of household services rose by 8% over the twelve months to June, due to price increases in school fees in September of last year and the increase in postal charges in April of this year.

The Minister for Treasury and Resources, Senator Alan Maclean described the decrease in inflation rates as "an unexpected but welcome fall." He added: "It is too early to suggest that recent rises in inflation have abated. We will just have to wait and see whether these new figures indicate a change in the trend."

Commenting on the high annual increases in food prices, Senator Maclean said: "After Brexit, Jersey has been affected by the less than favourable exchange rates. As a lot of food is imported, it will take time for the weak exchange rate to filter through."

For more information on the RPI, click here.