Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg. The sign reads "Half price!"
Photo: Mikhail Razuvaev
| Other Photos |
 |
|
 |
Inflation Spreading beyond Food
Consumer price growth from January to the end of April totaled 6.3 percent, and base (monetary) inflation rose to 4.5 percent, according to Rosstat data published yesterday. Weekly inflation in March was 1.2 percent, in April 1.4 percent (0.6 percent in April of last year), and it is continuing to rise. The inflation rate from April 2007 to April 2008 was 14.2 percent. Now economists are unable to attribute inflation to one-time factors as it spreads to other sectors of the economy. That spread also makes it harder for the government to fight it.
Food and fuel contributed the most to inflation in April. Sunflower seed oil rose in price by 8.6 percent, compared to 4.6 percent in March. Bread and bread products rose by 6.4 percent, compared to 4.3 percent the previous month, and pasta rose by 6.1 percent both months. Gasoline prices followed oil prices up by 4.3 percent in April, compared to 1.7 percent in March.
Until April, prices for food had been rising at an accelerated rate, but now that inflation has spread to other sectors. Prices for non-food goods rose by 0.9 percent in April (0.7 percent in March) and service rose in price by 1.0 percent (0.6 percent in March). Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade Andrey Klepach said yesterday that the latest package of anti-inflation measures has been submitted to the government, but “the risks of going beyond 10-percent inflation in 2008 are very high.” The Economics Ministry has also proposed raising railway fares by 8 percent in July. Many economists have been certain for months that inflation would exceed 12 percent this year. They say that inflation is already curbing economic growth.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of May 06, 2008
|
|
|
