The Statistical Center of Iran has released a new report, surveying the price changes in 53 food items during the month ending April 20.
The biggest month-on-month price rise for a food item in urban areas during the month under review was recorded for tomatoes with 18.2%. A kilogram of tomatoes was sold at 62,753 rials (27 cents).
The second and third biggest month-on-month price increase during the period under review was registered for pomegranates with 8.1% and cookies with 6.8%, SCI reported.
A kilogram of pomegranates was sold at 248,348 rials ($1.05) and a kilogram of cookies went for 353,678 rials ($1.5).
Eleven out of 53 food items examined by SCI this month saw a price decline in the first Iranian month compared with the month before. Bananas with 26.7%, watermelons with 15.9% and cucumbers with 14.2% were the top three items registering month-on-month deflations. A kilogram of bananas was sold at 363,397 rials ($1.54), a kilo of watermelon was at 57,969 rials (25 cents) and a kilo of cucumbers went for 112,935 rials (48 cents).
Compared with the same month of the year before, the retail prices for hydrogenated vegetable oil during the month increased by 151.8%, registering the highest year-on-year price rise for a food item last month. It was sold at 230,806 rials (98 cents) per kg last month.
The second and third biggest year-on-year price rise in the same month among food items were registered for imported rice with 137.4% and chicken with 135.6%. A kilogram of imported rice and chicken was sold at 245,400 rials ($1.04) and 273,891 rials ($1.16), respectively.
Year-on-year price deflation was registered for five items. Onions with 44.7%, limes with 11.3% and potatoes with 10.3% were the top three items registering year-on-year deflations.
A kilogram of onions, limes and potatoes were sold at 47,948 rials (20 cents), 248,017 rials ($1.05), and 52,250 rials (22 cents), respectively.
The overall average goods and services Consumer Price Index in the 12-month period ending April 20 increased by 38.9% compared with the corresponding period of the year before.
SCI had put average annual inflation rate for the preceding Iranian month, which ended on March 20, at 36.4%.
The consumer inflation for the month under review (March 21-April 20) registered an increase of 49.5% compared with the similar month of the previous Iranian year. The year-on-year inflation of the month ending March 20 was 48.7%.
The overall CPI (using the Iranian year to March 2017 as the base year) stood at 306.1 for the month, indicating a 2.7% rise compared with the previous month. Month-on-month consumer inflation was at 1.8% for the preceding month.
SCI put average annual inflation for urban and rural at 38.6% and 40.6% respectively.
CPI registered a year-on-year increase of 48.8% for urban areas and 53% for rural areas in the month ending April 20.
The overall CPI reached 302.7 for urban households and 325.4 for rural households, indicating a month-on-month increase of 2.6% and 3% for urban and rural areas, respectively.
The highest monthly growth in the index among 12 groups of the basket of consumer goods and services purchased by households in the Iranian month ending April 20 was recorded for “miscellaneous items and services” group with 8% while “communications” group posted the lowest inflation of 0.5%.
The highest year-on-year inflation in the month under review was posted for “furniture, home appliances and their maintenance” with 71.3% while the lowest YOY inflation was registered for “communication” group with 19.4%.
The highest and lowest average annual inflation was registered for “transportation” with 65.9% and “communications” with 17.7%.
With a coefficient of 26.64%, the CPI of “food and beverages” for all Iranian households stood at 395.3 in the month ending April 20, indicating a 2.9% increase compared with the month before.
The index registered a year-on-year increase of 63.5%. The CPI of the group increased by 43.6% in the 12-month period ending April 20 year-on-year.
