In March, the consumer price index rose by 3.9% compared with March last year
According to Statistics Estonia, in March, the consumer price index increased by 0.4% compared with February 2024 and by 3.9% compared with March 2023. Goods were 1.9% and services 7.1% more expensive than in March last year.
The last time that the change of the consumer price index compared with the same month of the previous year was smaller than 3.9% was in June 2021, when it was 3.8%.
Viktoria Trasanov, team lead of consumer price statistics at Statistics Estonia, said that, compared with March 2023, the consumer price index was affected the most by price changes related to housing, health and communication services, which together contributed over 40% of the total rise. “Price changes related to food and non-alcoholic beverages were not in the top three, mainly due to the 25.9% lower prices of fresh vegetables,” added Trasanov. Among food products, bigger decreases compared with March last year were also registered in the prices of sugar (-15.1%), flour mixes (-13.0%) and fresh fish (-12.2%). On the other hand, olive oil was 29.1%, juices and syrups 24.0% and canned milk 23.4% more expensive.
Petrol was 0.2% more expensive and diesel fuel 3.5% cheaper.
Compared with February, the consumer price index was influenced the most by more expensive mobile communication services, the end of the winter sales on clothing and footwear and the higher prices of petrol, on the one hand, and by discount prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, on the other hand.
Change in the consumer price index by commodity group, March 2024
|
Commodity group |
March 2023 – |
February 2024 – |
|
TOTAL |
3.9 |
0.4 |
|
Food and non-alcoholic beverages |
1.1 |
-0.8 |
|
Alcoholic beverages and tobacco |
8.2 |
0.7 |
|
Clothing and footwear |
3.6 |
3.7 |
|
Housing |
3.8 |
-0.4 |
|
Household goods |
1.9 |
-0.2 |
|
Health |
9.8 |
1.0 |
|
Transport |
2.6 |
1.0 |
|
Communications |
10.5 |
7.6 |
|
Recreation and leisure |
4.4 |
-0.3 |
|
Education |
7.2 |
0.3 |
|
Hotels, cafés and restaurants |
2.8 |
-0.2 |
|
Miscellaneous goods and services |
4.9 |
-0.3 |
See also the consumer price index calculator and the prices section on our website.
For the statistical activity “Consumer price index”, the main representative of public interest is the Ministry of Finance, commissioned by whom Statistics Estonia collects and analyses the data.
More detailed data have been published in the statistical database.
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For further information:
Silvia Uus
Communications Partner
Marketing and Dissemination Department
Statistics Estonia
Tel +372 625 9367
press [at] stat.ee (press[at]stat[dot]ee)