In October the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices went down to 121.15 from 121.96 in September, the National Statistics Office said today.

The Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices went down by 0.7 per cent over the previous month. This primarily reflected a drop of 5.6 per cent in the Restaurants and Hotels Index, mainly due to seasonally lower prices of accommodation services. Cheaper fuels were the main reason behind a decrease of 0.8 per cent in the Transport Index. The Communications Index went down by 0.6 per cent on account of lower-priced mobile phones.

A downward shift in the price of fruit resulted in a decline of 0.2 per cent in the Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages Index. The Miscellaneous Goods and Services Index went down by 0.1 per cent due to lower jewellery prices.

The Clothing and Footwear Index recorded a rise of 7.2 per cent, mainly due to seasonally higher-priced garments. Upward movements in school and private tuition fees resulted in an increase of 4.6 per cent in the Education Index.

The Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas, and Other Fuels Index went up by 1.0 per cent due to costlier services for the maintenance and repair of dwellings. Higher prices of furniture led the Furniture, Household Equipment and Routine Maintenance of the House Index to rise by 0.6 per cent.

The Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco Index edged up by 0.1 per cent due to higher-priced wines. The Health Index registered a similar increase, primarily due to higher fees for medical and paramedical services.

In October, the twelve-month moving average rate of inflation stood at 1.4 per cent and the annual rate was 0.5 per cent. Both rates continued their declining trend, the NSO concluded.

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