CPI FALLS to 4%

chucky

some people on here are very strange...

the inflation rate goes up, they complain and don't query the figures.

the inflation rate goes down and people complain that the numbers aren't correct and query the figures.

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

chucky wrote: »

some people on here are very strange...

the inflation rate goes up, they complain and don't query the figures.

the inflation rate goes down and people complain that the numbers aren't correct and query the figures.

The same strange people do exactly the same strange thing to house price figures.

I wonder if it's just a coincidence?.....;)

luvpump

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Down from 4.4% to 4%.

Looks like the MPC was absolutely right to leave rates alone.

RPI down to 5.3% as well.

This is just background noise, inflation is still at least twice the target !
The European central banks decision to raise there rates last week virutally make it a certainty that the BOE will raise them next month..

StevieJ

artha wrote: »

I must be buying the wrong things or live in an expensive area then. I'm pretty sure that just about every food staple I buy on a regular basis is more expensive than a year ago. For prepacked fruit and veg you have to be carefull as a number of pack sizes have started to reduce eg 1kg bags have now become 750g or 7 apples has become 6 in a bag etc. Interestingly the BBC News24 site had a figure of 5.7% for food inflation this morning. Given the dramatic increases in raw cereal/rice/sugar etc commodity prices over the last year it's hard to see why some foods have apparently come down other than by a quirk of circumstance and calculation

I noticed that pack size trick in the beer section, I have to admire their cheek One week two 15 pack Boddingtons were on sale for £16, the next week two (almost identical to the eye) 12 pack Boddingtons were on sale for £16
I have to point out that I don't buy 30/24 cans of beer a week, I just noticed

Stompa

artha wrote: »

I must be buying the wrong things or live in an expensive area then. I'm pretty sure that just about every food staple I buy on a regular basis is more expensive than a year ago. For prepacked fruit and veg you have to be carefull as a number of pack sizes have started to reduce eg 1kg bags have now become 750g or 7 apples has become 6 in a bag etc. Interestingly the BBC News24 site had a figure of 5.7% for food inflation this morning. Given the dramatic increases in raw cereal/rice/sugar etc commodity prices over the last year it's hard to see why some foods have apparently come down other than by a quirk of circumstance and calculation

Yes, most of the increases I've seen have been due to the packet sizes being reduced rather than the price itself going up. At the beginning of 2009 I started keeping a precise record of every item I buy (including price and size), so I have a large spreadsheet which I can use to look for changes, and I'm simply not seeing big increases. Using your examples, I'm currently paying less for bread & sugar than I was two years ago, and apples are the same price.

artha

DervProf wrote: »

Some foods, such as Tesco's Finest Individually Hand Picked, Deseeded and Polished White Grapes may have reduced in price, due to the fact that they had huge price increases until they weren't selling any. As far as I can tell, the stuff I buy every week - luxuries such as eggs, bread, minced beef, oranges, peppers etc have not come down in price. I think milk has a little though :cool:.

Thats my experience as well. Milk has been reasonably stable over the last 12 months but has seen a slight decrease if you buy in big enough quantities or buy the offers now instigated by the big supermarkets following the Aldi prices. Milk in pint size has seen an increase of 28% over the last couple of years. It is individual low income earners/pensioners who suffer a greater level of inflationary pressure than the broad indices suggest.

Thrugelmir

Stompa wrote: »

Yes, most of the increases I've seen have been due to the packet sizes being reduced rather than the price itself going up. At the beginning of 2009 I started keeping a precise record of every item I buy (including price and size), so I have a large spreadsheet which I can use to look for changes, and I'm simply not seeing big increases. Using your examples, I'm currently paying less for bread & sugar than I was two years ago, and apples are the same price.

So where have the biggest increases been noted, allowing for change in pack size?

abaxas

RenovationMan wrote: »

But that target was set against the backdrop of a healthy, successful economy which is definitely not what we have right now. The priority of the BoE is to ensure the stability of the whole of the UK economy, not just one part of it (interest rates).

The ECB rate change increased the value of the Euro, which in turn made UK goods less expensive for our European trading partners to buy. The government want an export led economic recovery (who wouldnt?) so then why would they increase interest rates just because a trading partner has raised theirs, especially when inflation has gone down and especially when low Stirling helps exports?

So basically they are exporting inflation to us?

Since we import lots of our food from the eurozone, is our ability to feed ourselves less important than exports?

Stompa

Thrugelmir wrote: »

So where have the biggest increases been noted, allowing for change in pack size?

So far this year I've only seen four of my regular items increase in price:

Oven Chips (+25%)
Sultanas (+11%)
Sunflower Oil (+18%)
Dried Pasta (+12%)

Thrugelmir

RenovationMan wrote: »

especially when inflation has gone down

No trend yet. Just one months figures.