From the Economics & Statistics Office (ESO)

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 12.1 percent in the second quarter of 2022 when compared to the same period in 2021. Eleven of the 12 CPI divisions recorded increases in average prices as education recorded a 0.6 percent decline.

In the second quarter of 2022, the division housing and utilities recorded the largest average price increase of 19.2 percent in the CPI basket. This was due mainly to the rise in the index for water supply which went up by 37.3 percent, the index for electricity, which increased by 20.2 percent, imputed rentals for owner-occupiers which rose by 22.4 percent, materials for the maintenance and repair of the dwelling up by 11.2 percent and actual rentals paid by tenants up by 10.8 percent.

The transport index rose by 17.0 percent, as fuel prices climbed by 37.3 percent. The index for the purchase of motor vehicles increased by 13.4 percent, and the index associated with the cost of purchased transport by air also went up by 11.3 percent.

The index for clothing and footwear moved upward by 10.4 percent in the second quarter of 2022. The main contributors to this increase were a 17.2 percent rise in the prices of footwear purchased locally and a 13.3 percent upward movement in clothing purchased locally.

A comparison of the second quarter of 2022 with the first quarter of 2022 indicates that the CPI rose by 2.2 percent, as the average cost of transport rose by 5.3 percent, and food and non-alcoholic beverages  moved upward by 3.9 percent. While communication also had a similar increase of 3.9 percent.

More information from the Cayman Islands’ Consumer Price Index Report: April to June  2022 may be downloaded from www.eso.ky