Friday, June 4 2021 11:24

ArmInfo.In the consumer market of Armenia in January-May 2021, inflation was recorded at 4.7%, against 2.5% inflation in the same period of 2020. According to the  Statistical Committee of the Republic of Armenia, this was provoked  by an increase in the prices of food products (including alcohol and  cigarettes) by 7.8% (against 5.6% a year earlier), non-food products  by 5% (against a decrease in prices by 0.5% a year earlier) and  tariffs for services - by 0.9% (against 0.4% a year earlier).

In y-o-y terms (compared to January-May 2020), the consumer market  recorded inflation of 5.5% (against inflation of 0.3% a year ago),  which was facilitated by the rise in prices for food products by 7.6%  and the same amount of non-food products (by 7.6%) and an increase in  service tariffs by 1.9%.

According to statistics, in May 2021 versus May 2020, consumer prices  increased by 5.9% (against 1.2% a year earlier), due to the rise in  prices for food products by 7.6%, non-food products - by 9%, and an  increase in tariffs for services by 2,2%. In May alone, a deflation  of 0.4% was recorded (against the May deflationary 0.1% in 2020)  against the background of a decrease in the price of food products by  0.8% and a decrease in tariffs for services by 0.2%, while prices for  non-food products remained unchanged. In Yerevan, consumer prices  decreased by 0.5% in May 2021 (against a 0.1% decline in May 2020).   Vegetables in y-o-y terms (May 2021 versus May 2020) went up in price  by 6.3%, but in May they fell by 7%.

Fruits rose in price by 0.4% in y-o-y terms, and fell by 4.3% in May  alone.  In total, vegetables and fruits fell in price in May 2021 by  5.8%, and this group of food products, having a share of 8.35% in the  food basket, had a 0.5% downward effect on consumer prices.  Dairy  products, cheese and eggs have risen in price in y-o-y terms by  11.5%, and fell in price by 1.3% in May alone. Moreover, the price of  eggs fell by 4.8% in May, with an annual jump of 46.1%.  Prices for  meat products increased by 5.3% in y-o-y terms, and in May alone - by  0.9%.  Sugar and granulated sugar rose in price in y-o-y terms by  43.3%, and in May alone- by 1.9%.  Fats of vegetable and animal  origin have risen in price in y-o-y terms by 33.4%, but in May alone-  by 3.6%.  It was mainly provoked by a jump in prices for sunflower  vegetable oil in an annualized rate of 84.4%, with a rise in price  for May by 6%.

Fish and seafood rose in price by 14.4% on an annual basis, and in  May alone - by 4.8%.  Alcoholic beverages and cigarettes rose in  price in y-o-y terms by 8.7%, and in May alone- by 1%.  Moreover, the  average increase in prices for alcoholic beverages amounted to 8.7%  in y-o-y terms and 0.7% in May, and for cigarettes - 8.7% and 1.5%,  respectively.

Bakery products and cereals rose in price in May by 0.5%, soft drinks  - by 0.6%, coffee, tea and cocoa - by 0.7%.

In the non-food market, in May 2021, prices for small household  electrical appliances increased by 1.2%, large household appliances -  by 0.8%, shoes and jewelry - by 0.7%, dishes, kitchen utensils,  gardening equipment, fuel and lubricants - by 0.5%, furniture,  carpets and floor coverings - by 0.2%. At the same time, in May 2021,  prices for construction materials fell by 0.3% and pharmaceuticals -  by 0.2%, while prices for clothes, cleaning and detergents remained  unchanged.

Gasoline and diesel fuel rose in price in May by 3% and 5.4%,  respectively. In y-o-y terms (May 2021 to May 2020), gasoline and  diesel fuel rose in price by 49.6% and 38.3%, and in January-May  2021alone  - by 21.6% and 32%, respectively.

The increase in tariffs for services was recorded in the fields of  culture and recreation - in May by 2.9% (with an annual growth of  3.8%), in the field of restaurant and hotel business - by 2% in May  (with an annual growth of 4, 5%), in the field of transport - in May  by 0.3% (with an annual growth of 11.7%), in the field of  communications - in May by 0.1% (with an annual growth of 1.1%). And  in the healthcare sector, services, having fallen in price by 0.1% in  May, increased in price by 6.2% in y-o-y terms, and the same  multidirectional tariffs were recorded for housing and communal  services - in May, a decline of 0.7% with an annual growth of 0,9%.

May deflation in the consumer market by 0.4% was accompanied by the  strengthening of the dram against the dollar by 0.8%. In January-May  2021, consumer market inflation of 4.7% was accompanied by a  devaluation of the dram against the dollar by 0.5% (against inflation  of 2.5% and devaluation of the dram by 1.2% a year earlier). In May  2021 by May 2020, the dram weakened against the dollar by 7.7% - to  521 AMD / $ 1 with inflation of 5.9% (against 484.1 AMD / $ 1 a year  earlier, with a 0.7% devaluation with inflation of 1,2%).