The growth of consumer prices in Ukraine in March 2022 accelerated to 4.5% from 1.6% in February, 1.3% in January and 0.6% in December, the State Statistics Service (Gosstat) reported on Friday.
In March last year, inflation was 1.7%, so in annual terms, in March this year, it rose to 13.7% from 10.7% in February and 10% in January, the agency said.
Core inflation also jumped to 3.8% last month from 1% in February and 0.1% in January. Taking into account 1.7% in March 2021 in annual terms, it increased to 10.5% from 8.2% in February and 7.6% in January.
Since the beginning of this year, for its first quarter, inflation was 7.6%, base – 4.9%, said the State Statistics Service.
The National Bank of Ukraine, as its head Kirill Shevchenko said in an interview with Ekonomicheskaya Pravda, estimated inflation in March at 2.1%, in annual terms – 11.1%, and the base – 8.5%, indicating that deviations from the pre-war forecast (respectively 9.2% and 8.2%) – moderate.
According to the State Statistics Service, prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 6.2% in the consumer market in March. Most of all (by 21.3% and 15.5%) rose in price fruits and vegetables. Prices for rice, cereal products, sugar, lard, sunflower oil, fish and fish products, pasta, butter, milk, cheese and eggs, soft drinks, meat and other products increased by 9.8-3.5%.
Clothes and footwear went up by 13%, incl. clothing – by 13.3%, footwear – by 12.5%.
The increase in prices (tariffs) by 0.5% for housing, water, electricity, gas and other types of fuel was mainly due to an increase in prices for rental housing by 4.0%, maintenance and repair of housing – by 2.2%.
Prices in the healthcare sector rose by 5.6%, primarily due to an increase in the cost of pharmaceutical products by 8.1%.
The 4.2% increase in transport prices was mainly due to a 7.7% increase in fuel and oil prices.
As reported, in 2021, inflation in Ukraine rose to 10% from 5% in 2020 and 4.1% in 2019, the core inflation to 7.9% against 4.5% a year earlier.
