13 July 2020
The overall Retail Price Index was measured at 106.8 in the second quarter of 2020. This is an increase from both the rate of the first quarter of 2020 (105.9), and the second quarter of 2019 (104.9). This means that retail prices rose, on average, by 1.8% over the past year, between the second quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2020.
The annual price inflation rate of 1.8% is a larger increase than the rate from last quarter (Q1 2020), when the annual price inflation rate was measured at 1.7% (see Chart 1).
During Q2 2020, items that made an upward contribution towards the headline rate of 1.8% included clothing, alcohol and tobacco, and fuel and transport fares. Likewise, there were also items which made a downward contribution toward the rate, including margarine and fish prices.
As most of the goods available in retail outlets on St Helena are imported from either South Africa or the United Kingdom, St Helena’s prices are heavily influenced by price inflation in those two countries, as well as the value of the St Helena pound compared to the South African Rand, the cost of freight, and import taxes. Inflation in the UK stood at 0.5% in May 2020. In South Africa, the value of the South African Rand has steadily fallen from around 17 Rand per Pound in 2019 to around 21 at the end of May 2020.
The full Statistical Bulletin can be found on the St Helena Government website here: https://www.sainthelena.gov.sh/st-helena/statistics/statistics-reports-and-publications/ detailed data can be accessed in Excel format from the ‘Inflation’ file at: https://www.sainthelena.gov.sh/st-helena/statistics/
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SHG
13 July 2020