March CPI reading shows inflation easing

Israel’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.4% in March 2023, the Central Bureau of Statistics announced this afternoon. This is within the range of expectations, with analysts predicting a rise between 0.3% and 0.6%. In the past 12 months the CPI has risen by 5%, down from 5.2% last month. This is the lowest rate of annual inflation since last September, when annual inflation stood at 4.6%.

There were notable price rises in March in clothing and footwear (4.1%), culture and entertainment (0.9%), and housing costs (0.6%).

There were notable price falls last month in fresh fruit (2.8%), and furniture and household maintenance products (1.6%).

Changes in home prices are published at the same time as the CPI but are not included in it. In January-February 2023 housing prices fell 0.2% in comparison with December-January 2022/2023, and have risen 12.7% in comparison with January-February 2022.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on April 14, 2023.

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