Dubai CPI up 03% in October

Consumer prices in the emirate of Dubai rose 03% on average in October compared to the same month a year ago, Dubai Statistics Centre (DSC) said on Monday. The rise in CPI (consumer price index) was due to the increase in prices of the housing, water, electricity and gas group by 22%, furniture and household goods by 15%, transport by 14% and hotels and restaurants by 01%. The DSC said group whose priced decreased were food and soft drinks (44%), miscellaneous goods and services (10%), communications (01%) while prices of other groups remained stable. The DSC noted that annual average inflation of CPI surged 2.07% in October compared to the same month in 2012. Consumer prices in Dubai surged 2.67 per cent in Dubai in November on the backdrop of rise in prices of goods and services during the month. Education, clothing and footwear and services of hotels and restaurants turned dearer during the month that pushed overall price index. However, retail prices declined 0.12 per cent on a month-to-month basis as compared to their level in October. The recently released figures by the Dubai Statistics Centre indicates decline in prices of water, electricity, food, houses and gas. Prices of food and non-alcohol drinks declined 1.29 per cent given to ease in prices of fish, seafood and vegetables. Similarly, tobacco products, health services and miscellaneous commodities reported a rise of 3.8 per cent, 3.35 per cent and 2.97 per cent during the reporting month. Prices of furniture, fixtures and house ware rose 2.17 per cent in November while transportation became dearer by 0.49 per cent. Other expenditure groups including entertainment and culture group reported a rise of 0.03 per cent. Property market continued to remain under pressure and prices of housing materials, services and maintenance declined by 2-5 per cent.