Prices on average for Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages fell by 2% in November this year compared to 2017, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The CSO claims that these prices fell due to lower prices across a range of products such as meat, bread & cereals and sugar, jam, honey, chocolate & confectionery.
Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages caused the second largest downward contribution to the Consumer Price Index, bringing it down 0.20%.
Prices for Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco, however, rose by 3.1%, mainly due to higher prices for tobacco products as a result of an increase in excise duty.
Consumption Expenditure
In terms of individual consumption expenditure (COICOP), Bread and Cereals fell by 2% for the year. Meat fell by 2.9%, Fruit and Vegetables fell by 2.1% and 1.1% respectively, while Sugar, Jam, Honey, Chocolate and Confectionary fell by 3.5% - the largest Food category drop for the year.
Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa fell by 4.6%, while Mineral waters, soft drinks, fruit and vegetable juices remained flat.
Spirits rose by 0.1% for the year, as wine fell by 0.9% and beer rose by 1% as Alcoholic Beverages’ COICOP remained flat.
Tobacco saw major consumption gains, despite the increase in excise duty, rising 6.3%. Cigarettes rose by 6.1% while other tobacco products jumped by 6.8%.
© 2018 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
