Inflation Rate Move up to 4.5% in the First Quarter of 2019

The Consumer Price Index in Cayman rose by 4.5 percent in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018. Most of the CPI divisions recorded increases except Transport and Miscellaneous Good and Services.  This represents an increase in the inflation rate; however, slightly lower than the peak of the second quarter of 2018 (4.8%).

In the first quarter, the highest average price increases in the CPI basket were recorded in housing and utilities (11.1%). Actual rentals paid by tenants observed to rise by 19.7 percent while the imputed rentals for owner occupiers average cost went up by 9.2 percent.

The index for communication moved up by 7.7 percent due to an increase in the average cost of telephone and telefax services (9.0%), while telephone and telefax equipment declined by 4.0 percent on average.

More information from the Cayman Islands’ Consumer Price Index Report: March 2019 may be downloaded from www.eso.ky