Our friends at Stats Canada published on Friday the CPI for the year ending January 2013 and it was at a miniscule 0.5%, thanks to gas prices dropping (this may change quickly this month with gas prices shooting back up to $1.30 a liter here in Ottawa).
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.5% in the 12 months to January, following a 0.8% gain in December. The main factor in the smaller increase in the CPI was gasoline prices, which fell 1.8% year-over-year in January after rising 1.0% in December.
Gas prices seem to be the yo-yo which is causing the inflation data to be a little hard to decipher in the past few months. As can be seen from the following graphic, the Gas Index has been a little wild:
While the changes lately have not been as wild, it still is causing a lot of confusion when it comes to the Consumer Price Index. As I have harped on previously, fuel prices really do echo throughout the economy, since most things need to be delivered in some fashion or another.
Another interesting graphic on fuel’s effect on the CPI overall:
Our friends at Stats Can analysed and pointed out that:
Food prices increased 1.1% on a year-over-year basis in January following a 1.5% advance in December. This slower rise was mainly attributable to easing price increases for food purchased from stores, notably meat. January’s 0.6% year-over-year advance in the food purchased from stores component was the smallest since July 2010.
Shelter costs rose 0.6% in the 12 months to January, matching the increase in December. Rent and homeowners’ replacement cost was up on a year-over-year basis. Conversely, mortgage interest cost decreased 4.2%.
Here is the graph of the CPI over the past little while too:
Bank of Canada View
Remember the Bank of Canada measures CPI in a little different way but their version of CPI is still low-ish:
The Bank of Canada’s core index rose 1.0% in the 12 months to January, following a 1.1% gain in December.
On a monthly basis, the seasonally adjusted core index rose 0.1% in January, matching the increase in December.
The Big Table
Here is the data from one of the BIG tables showing which categories had the biggest jump year over year and month over month:
Consumer Price Index and major components, Canada Not seasonally adjusted
Relative importance1 |
January 2012 |
December 2012 |
January 2013 |
Dec 2012
|
Jan 2012
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
% |
(2002=100) |
% change |
||||
All-items Consumer Price Index (CPI) |
100.002 |
120.7 |
121.2 |
121.3 |
0.1 |
0.5 |
Food |
15.99 |
130.2 |
131.2 |
131.6 |
0.3 |
1.1 |
Shelter |
27.49 |
127.1 |
127.5 |
127.8 |
0.2 |
0.6 |
Household operations, furnishings and equipment |
11.55 |
112.2 |
113.2 |
113.5 |
0.3 |
1.2 |
Clothing and footwear |
5.31 |
89.3 |
89.2 |
87.9 |
-1.5 |
-1.6 |
Transportation |
20.60 |
127.4 |
125.8 |
126.7 |
0.7 |
-0.5 |
Health and personal care |
4.95 |
118.1 |
118.6 |
118.5 |
-0.1 |
0.3 |
Recreation, education and reading |
11.20 |
102.6 |
105.3 |
103.7 |
-1.5 |
1.1 |
Alcoholic beverages and tobacco products |
2.91 |
136.3 |
138.3 |
138.9 |
0.4 |
1.9 |
Special aggregates |
||||||
Core CPI3 |
82.15 |
118.4 |
119.5 |
119.6 |
0.1 |
1.0 |
All-items CPI excluding energy |
89.92 |
117.9 |
118.7 |
118.7 |
0.0 |
0.7 |
Energy4 |
10.08 |
155.5 |
151.9 |
152.8 |
0.6 |
-1.7 |
Gasoline |
5.80 |
174.7 |
171.7 |
171.6 |
-0.1 |
-1.8 |
All-items CPI excluding food and energy |
73.93 |
115.2 |
116.0 |
115.9 |
-0.1 |
0.6 |
Goods |
47.80 |
113.6 |
112.6 |
112.9 |
0.3 |
-0.6 |
Services |
52.20 |
127.8 |
129.7 |
129.6 |
-0.1 |
1.4 |
Inflation 2013
What was Inflation like in 2013?
- Christmas CPI Data Ho Ho Ho
- Low Flying Prices: Inflation at 1.1% for September
- The Price is Right? Consumer Price Index up 1.1% for August in Canada
- CPI Up to 1.2 % in June in Canada 2013
- Inflation at 0.4 % For April in Canada
- Inflation Back to 1.0% for March in Canada
- Inflation Up a Little in February in Canada
- CPI at 0.5% for January in Canada, Wow that is Low!
- Inflation Below 1% to end 2012 in Canada
Interesting about food prices. We don’t personally pay a lot of attention to food prices (we’re fortunate), however one thing we do do is purchase much of our meat in bulk. Not only does that save $’s because our unit cost is lower, but it insulates us against these inflationary increases for about year. Buying a bunch of chickens and a quarter of beef once a year and throwing them in the deepfreeze means prices can go up, doesn’t affect us until next year.
That’s not the motivation for purchasing our food that way, it’s just a nice to have I guess.
The price of food has been affecting me. I looked at buying chicken last week but it is so expensive that it is no longer part of my grocery list. We don’t eat much meat and it has to be a big sale or an in store mark-down for some meat that is on it’s last day of sale for me to make a purchase.
I keep cutting different foods to stay within my set food budget but sometimes I dream about steak……
Indeed, but if you asked politicians, they might say that Inflation is at historically low levels, interesting the difference in opinions.