PHILIPSBURG:--- The consumer price index for Sint Maarten has decreased in the month of
April 2016 by 0.3 percent compared to that of February 2016.
When comparing average consumer prices over a twelve month period (April
2015 to April 2016), a decrease of 113.3 percent was recorded compared to the same period one year earlier. The current level of deflation (-0.2%) is comparable to that recorded in January 1986(-0.3%).
This is evident from the data released by the Department of Statistics (STAT) today.
Price changes between April & February 2016 The consumer price index for Sint Maarten has decreased in the month of April 2016 by
0.3 percent compared to that of February 2016. The price index recorded in April 2016 is 125.7.
|
Expenditure Category |
WEIGHT |
INDEX FEBRUARY 2016 |
INDEX APRIL2016 |
% CHANGE |
| Food | 10% | 199.1 | 198.2 | -0.5 |
| Beveragesandtobacco | 1% |
145.9 |
146.6 |
0.5 |
| Clothing& footwear | 7% | 111.0 | 110.9 | -0.1 |
| Housing | 39% |
121.6 |
120.7 |
-0.7 |
| Household furnishing& appliances | 6% | 145.9 | 144.9 | -0.7 |
| Medicalcare | 3% | 115.4 | 115.3 | -0.1 |
| Transport&communication | 20% | 104.5 | 105.2 | 0.7 |
| Recreation & education | 6% |
106.4 |
106.4 |
0.0 |
| Misc. | 8% | 120.7 | 120.8 | 0.1 |
| TOTAL |
100% |
126.1 |
125.7 |
-0.3 |
Expenditure Categories – overall decrease
In April 2016, three of the nine expenditure categories became more expensive, whilst five became cheaper and one remained unchanged. Amongst the more expensive were the categories; ‘Beverages and Tobacco’ (+0.5%), ‘Transport & Communication’ (+0.7%) and ‘Miscellaneous’ (+0.1%). Whereas slight decreases were recorded for the expenditure category ‘Food’ (-0.5%), ‘Clothing and Footwear’ (-0.1%) ‘Household Furnishing & Appliances’ (-0.7%), ‘Housing’ (-0.7%), and ‘Medical Care’ (-0.1%), whilst the expenditure category ‘Recreation & Education’remained unchanged. Notable is the drop in consumer prices for the expenditure category ‘Food’. This is the first decrease recorded within this sector since mid-2010.
