In the ninth month of the year, the FAO food price index increased by 3% compared to September 2018, explained by the rise in the prices of sugar, meat, dairy products and vegetable oils.
From FAO's monthly report:
» The FAO Food Price Index* (FFPI) averaged nearly 170 points in September 2019, unchanged from August but 3.3 percent higher than in the corresponding period last year. While in September sugar prices fell sharply, the decline was almost entirely offset by higher prices of vegetable oils and meat. The Dairy index was down only marginally, whereas that of cereals remained steady.
Price per gallon of regular gasoline: Costa Rica $3.98, Nicaragua $3.62, Honduras $3.39, El Salvador $3.06, Guatemala $3.04 and Panama $2.88.
From the Ministry of Economy of El Salvador:
The current reference prices present their third consecutive decline in gasoline prices and without any variation for low-sulfur diesel, this is because of the trade conflict between the United States and China, the largest consumers of oil and derivatives worldwide. On September 1, both nations-imposed tariffs on different products, the U.S. country for a value of US$300 billion, while China imposed tariffs of US$75 billion on different products, which highlights the 5% tax on oil and its derivatives. Because of these measures, international prices tended to fall, for fear of a fall in world demand.
In the eighth month of the year, the FAO food price index fell 2% from July 2019, explained by the decline in the prices of sugar and main cereals.
From FAO's monthly report:
» The FAO Food Price Index* (FFPI) averaged 169.8 points in August 2019, down 1.1 percent (almost 2.0 points) from July but still 1.1 percent higher than in August 2018.
Price per gallon of regular gasoline: Costa Rica $4.44, Nicaragua $3.61, Honduras $3.44, El Salvador $3.12, Guatemala $3.09 and Panama $2.93.
From the Ministry of Economy of El Salvador statement:
The reference prices for gasoline and diesel add their second consecutive decline for the current fortnight, the reductions are because of increases in production and refining by U.S.
In the seventh month of the year, FAO's food price index rose 2% over the same month in 2018, again explained by the increase in the prices of cereals, meat and sugar.
From FAO's monthly report:
» The FAO Food Price Index* (FFPI) averaged 170.9 points in July 2019, down 1.1 percent (1.8 points) from June but 2.3 percent higher than in July 2018. The month-on-month decline was the result of lower prices for some cereals, dairy products and sugar, which more than offset somewhat firmer prices for meat and oils.
Price per gallon of regular gasoline: Costa Rica $4.12, Nicaragua $3.82, Honduras $3.44, El Salvador $3.29, Guatemala $3.22 and Panama $3.04.
From the Ministry of Economy of El Salvador statement:
The reference prices for gasoline and diesel show increases in this fortnight, because of the shortage presented by the United States in oil reserves by 10.8 million barrels according to the weekly report of the IEA.
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The costs of metals and electricity and lighting, during the fifth month of the year explained the 8% year-on-year rise in prices of construction materials.
The statistics of the Price Index of Construction Materials (IPMC) corresponding to May 2019, specify that a 7.6% year-on-year growth was reported regarding May of the previous year (8.6% in April 2019 and 8.9% in May 2018), indicates the report of the Central Bank of Nicaragua (BCN).
In the sixth month of the year, the FAO food price index increased by 1% compared to the same month in 2018, explained by the increase in the prices of cereals, meat and sugar.
Price per gallon of regular gasoline: Costa Rica $4.29, Nicaragua $3.62, Honduras $3.47, El Salvador $3.16, Guatemala $3.09 and Panama $2.90.
From the Ministry of Economy of El Salvador statement:
The reference prices for gasoline and diesel present lows for the present fortnight, this trend is because of the good time presented by the refineries for the first half of May, where there were significant increases in reserves of gasoline and diesel.
Since June 1, there has been a 3% increase in the average selling price to the final consumer in the country, going from the cost per megawatt of $219.8 reported in March to $226.5 from this month.
The increase was officialized in La Gaceta on June 18 and the new price per megawatt is applied to each tier that makes up the tariff sheet, which includes residential, commercial, industrial and irrigation tariffs.
In May, the CPI rose 6%, reinforcing the upward trend that has been reported since February.
In February, the indicator stood at 3.3%, in March it was 5.1% and in April, 5.8%. The May figure reinforces the upward trend that is likely to continue for the rest of the year.
In the fifth month of the year, the FAO food price index fell 2% over the same month in 2018, explained by the decline in prices of cereals and vegetable oils.
From the FAO monthly report:
The FAO Food Price Index* (FFPI) continued to rise for the fifth consecutive month, averaging 172.4 points in May 2019, up 1.2 percent (2.1 points) from April but still 1.9 percent below its level in the corresponding month last year. While prices for sugar and oils fell, the other sub-indices registered increases in May, led again by strong month-on-month firming of prices of dairy products followed by cereals.