CONSUMER PRICES FELL very slightly last month in comparison to prices in October. The Central Statistics Office updated its Consumer Price Index yesterday – you can see the table here – and it showed an overall drop in the price of consumer goods by 0.1 per cent.

However, while alcohol and tobacco, housing expenses, health and transport costs fell a little, the costs of clothing and footwear rose.

• Food and non-alcoholic drinks fell by 0.2 per cent against October levels.
• Alcohol and tobacco fell by 0.1 per cent.
• Housing, water, electricity and gas fell by 0.2 per cent.
• Health costs fell by 0.2 per cent.
• Transport fell by 0.3 per cent.
• Recreation and culture costs fell by 0.1 per cent.
• Education costs fell by 0.2 per cent.
• Restaurants and hotels prices fell by 0.4 per cent.
• Furnishings, household equipment, house maintenance stayed at the same price level.
• Communication costs stayed the same.
• Only clothing and footwear were up in price, by 1.4 per cent.

There was no change in the overall price of consumer goods between September and October, and prices had fallen by .1 per cent between August and September. Yesterday’s figures show the fourth month where there was not a hike in prices overall.