The Consumer Protection Agency of the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry announces the Consumer Price Monitor for the month of August 2023. The Monitor presents the weighted average price for 250 basic consumer products (food and other products) based on quantities and prices per day in in which these products were made available in 400 retail stores throughout Cyprus throughout the month.
The purpose of the Observatory is to provide the consumer with an objective comparative view of purchase prices from all retail stores, supermarkets, bakeries, bakeries, kiosks, etc.
In conclusion, the assessment made for the month of August shows that prices show increases in 25 categories of basic products out of a total of 45 categories, which reflect the increase in inflation in the food sector as well as in general inflation which increased to 2,6% in August compared to 1,5% in July 2023. According to the published data of the Statistical Service, inflation in the food sector rose in the period January – August 2023 to 9,05% compared to the corresponding period last year. The corresponding inflation rate in the period January - July was 8,9% and in the period January - June 8,75%. In addition, comparing with the previous month of June 2023, an increase of 1,91% is observed which is due to the increase in prices of fresh and processed agricultural products by 4,5%.
The most significant increases were recorded in fresh fish and shellfish by 20,5%, greens by 6,1%, laundry detergents by 3,5%, pulses by 3%, rice by 2,8%, flour by 2,5 %, sugar 2,2%, cookies 2,3% and other products at a lower rate.
Furthermore, the remaining 20 categories remained stable or recorded a decrease, with the main decreases recorded in frozen molluscs/shellfish by 9,2%, frozen fish by 8,3%, bread by 3%, charcoal and toilet paper by 2%, frozen breaded/precooked meats by 1,6%, baby diapers by 1,2% and eggs by 1,1%.
It is emphasized once again that the Consumer Protection Service is intensively continuing the controls regarding the implementation of the zero rate VAT measure, recording prices of 65 products in nine different supermarkets, which correspond to 58 points of sale throughout Cyprus. The assessment of the Service for the period of implementation of the measure shows that this has a very positive impact and a significant benefit for all consumers. More specifically, according to the last recording made on September 15, prices are maintained at a rate of 77% at exactly the same levels (or lower) as those recorded on May 3.
The Consumer Protection Service clarifies that Price Observatories are prepared solely for consumer information purposes and in no way constitute advice. Price Watchers are not intended and cannot substitute for the market research that each consumer should do based on their own preferences, data and needs, nor are they intended to indicate to consumers which outlets to choose or specific products.
It is particularly noted that some of the products included in the Observatory have quality differences that cannot be determined. For this purpose, the Service urges consumers to do substantial market research before proceeding with purchases, taking into account the results of the specific Observatory.
The Observatory's detailed information is provided on its website Consumer Protection Service.