The three CIS countries with the highest inflation remain unchanged.
Belarus is in number 1 place with an increase in consumer prices of 0.7 per cent, 0.4 per cent growth occurred in Russia and 0.3% in Kazakhstan. The overall picture looks brighter if we consider longer terms – from December 2013 to May of the current year, the prices grew by 24 per cent. For comparison, in Russia – 21%, and in Kazakhstan – only 9%.
Sugar went up in price the most – by as much as 9.4 percent, tea by 2.6 percent, pasta and confectionery products by 1.3 percent. But since the beginning of the year the undisputed leader has been fruit – as much as 39.2 percent, vegetables by 26.5 percent, oil rose by 23.7 per cent, as well as fish and seafood – with growth of 21 percent. On average, since the beginning of the year, food prices rose 6 percent.
There was also a certain decline in prices for some positions. So, in May the prices of vegetables fell by 5 and a half percent, potatoes fell by 1.2 percent, butter – one and a half percent, vegetable oil – by 0.4%.
The rise in prices affected not only products. Significantly more expensive became medications, household chemicals, housing and communal services. With this in mind, the real average income of the population since the beginning of the year has not grown, it even declined.
Aleh Razhkou, belsat.eu/en/
