Inflation Rate Went Down But Are Food Prices Going Down?
The drop in food prices is responsible for today’s slowing inflation rate, according to Statistics Canada. The living cost has risen by 1.3% within the past year, up on till the 5th month of May – a little slower pace than its increment.
In May, the inflation rate went up by 1.3%, a 3% drop from the month of April.
The biggest factor for the slowing down of inflation rates is the drop in food prices.
Food prices have gone down by .1% in the year coming up to May, the data agency calculates.
Meat and bakery products prices contributed the bulk of the drop, food prices bought from stores were down by a whopping 1.2%. Even though food prices went down as a whole, the annual pace was rather less than it was the previous month, at 1.1%.
“Recall that the Bank of Canada specifically cited food costs as a temporary factor driving inflation lower, but that’s much less of a drag than just a few short months ago,” Bank of Montreal economist Doug Porter noted.
Fruit and vegetable prices went through something similar, although vegetable prices have started to creep higher again, Statistics Canada data released Friday shows. Vegetable prices rose year over year for the first time since August 2016 in May.
“You’re supposed to eat more fruits and vegetables, but they are overpriced,” shopper Christine Hinds said, “severely overpriced.”
“If they feel stretched buying food that’s the right feeling to have,” Evans said. “I feel it, too, and that stretching feeling really kicked in in 2014.”
