In December, the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices went down by 0.6 per cent over the previous month, the National Statistics Office said today.

In December, the twelve-month moving average rate of inflation stood at 3.2 per cent and the annual rate stood at 2.8 per cent, down from 3.6% in November.

This primarily reflected a decrease of 7.7 per cent in the Communications Index, mostly due to lower fees for Internet services. The Restaurants and Hotels Index registered a decrease of 3.2 per cent, mainly on account of seasonally lower-priced accommodation services. Cheaper package tours were the main reason behind a drop of 0.5 per cent in the Recreation and Culture Index.

The Clothing and Footwear Index advanced by 2.2 per cent due to seasonally higher-priced garments. An upward movement in cigarette prices caused the Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco Index to go up by 0.6 per cent, while higher airfares brought about a similar increase in the Transport Index. Higher fees for certain financial services underlay an increase of 0.5 per cent in the Miscellaneous Goods and Services Index.

The Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages Index and the Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels Index both went up by 0.2 per cent due to higher prices of vegetables and gas respectively. The Furniture, Household Equipment and Routine Maintenance of the House Index edged up by 0.1 per cent, mostly due to higher- priced tableware. A similar rise was recorded in the Health Index, mainly on account of higher fees for medical and paramedical services.

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