The consumer price index (CPI) last month rose 1 percent from a year earlier on the back of more expensive food items, particularly vegetables, following several days of heavy rain, government statistics released yesterday showed.
On a monthly basis, the inflationary gauge rose 0.76 percent, 0.12 percent after seasonal adjustments, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said.
Last month, food prices rose 2.2 percent from a year earlier, with the prices of vegetables, fishery products and meat increasing 12.91 percent, 5.84 percent and 2.58 percent respectively, the agency said.
The latest vegetable price increase was the highest since December last year, when prices rose 16.53 percent because of bad weather, it added.
However, the prices of fruits and eggs fell 6.92 percent and 6.04 percent year-on-year respectively, offsetting the increased vegetable prices, the agency said.
The spike in vegetables prices meant a household with monthly spending of NT$60,000 spent an additional NT$209 on vegetables from the same period last year, it added.
In addition, the cost of dining out last month rose 2.13 percent from a year earlier, meaning a household with monthly spending of NT$60,000 spent an additional NT$135 eating out, the agency said.
Transportation and communications expenses fell 0.48 percent from a year earlier due to fuel prices and communications rates declining 2.67 percent and 1.59 percent year-on-year respectively, it added.
The cost of medical care rose 1.83 percent, as fees for outpatient services at major hospitals rose, the agency said.
Core CPI — a more reliable long-term tracker of consumer prices, because it excludes volatile items such as vegetables, fruits and energy — rose 0.97 percent from a year earlier, DGBAS data showed.
DGBAS Department of Statistics Deputy Director Mei Chia-yuan (梅家瑗) said that based on core CPI, the nation’s inflation remains mild and stable.
The cost of a basket of 17 household necessities — including rice, pork, bread, eggs, sugar, cooking oil and toilet paper — monitored by the government last month rose 1.97 percent annually, compared with a 2.1 percent year-on-year increase in May, the agency said.
The wholesale price index (WPI), a measure of commercial production costs, last month fell 1.68 percent from a year earlier, with the export price index up 3.29 percent in US dollar terms, but falling 3.57 percent in New Taiwan dollar terms, the agency said.
The trend is favorable for exports, but might squeeze profit margins for local exporters, it added.
In the first six months of this year, CPI rose 0.67 percent from the same period last year, while WPI gained 0.83 percent, the agency said.
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