Posted Sep 28, 2022, 3:02 PMUpdated on Sep 28, 2022 at 3:03 p.m.
For the first time since February, energy prices fell (-8.1%) in Reunion in August, according to the latest monthly consumer price index measured by INSEE. The drop in petroleum product prices reached -10.4%. The prices of unleaded fuel and diesel fell by 9.3% and 9.1% respectively, in line with a fall in world prices. As for that of the price of the gas bottle, it plunged by 31.4% following the establishment of a pricing of 15 euros, thanks to assistance from the communities, until the end of December. As a result, the overall consumer price index fell by 0.9% over the month.
A 1.1% decline in the prices of services, after five consecutive months of increases, contributed to this trend reversal. On the other hand, increases continue to be recorded in the prices of manufactured products (+0.6% in August) and those of food (+0.5%). The drop in fresh produce, whose prices had exploded in the second quarter after the damage caused to crops by two cyclones, is marking time while the rise in other food products continues.
Inflation at 4.6%
Over thirteen months, from July 2021 to August 2022, prices increased by 4.6% in Reunion. The strongest increase is that of energy prices (+22.5%); those of food, excluding fresh products, increased by 6.4% over the period. INSEE reports that it cannot publish year-on-year changes over twelve months, from August 2021 to August 2022, as price readings could not be taken in August 2021 due to containment measures linked to the health crisis taken at this time on the island.
Inflation in Reunion is slightly lower than that measured at the national level (5.9% over one year). The rise in energy prices was even more marked on the island than the national average, as was that of manufactured goods. On the other hand, the prices of services and food increased a little less in Reunion than elsewhere in France.
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