Consumer Prices Fall for Second Consecutive Month
The average price of goods and services in Estonia dropped 0.3 percent between September and October, marking a second straight month of decline in what has so far been a yo-yo year for the CPI.
The monthly drop was driven mainly by a 2.9 percent decrease in motor fuel prices, which accounted for about half the decrease, according to Statistics Estonia.
Cheaper heat energy, which saw a 1.6 percent price drop, and a 4.4 percent decline in fruit prices also played a role.
In the year-on-year comparison, consumer prices were up just 1.5 percent, the lowest 12-month rise seen in 2013.
Household electricity, which has been jolting the CPI upward in annual comparisons since deregulation at the beginning of the year, was 29.9 percent more expensive in October than it was a year earlier. Prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, which carry considerable weight in the index, were up 1.7 percent year on year.
But cheaper transport, down 6.1 percent since October 2012, canceled out half the increase caused by electricity and food, according to Statistics Estonia.