Abu Dhabi's year-on-year inflation rate for May 2010 was 3.02 per cent, as the index accelerated from 114.75 points in May 2009 to 118.22 points in April 2010, according to the May issue of the Monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) report issued by Statistics Centre of Abu Dhabi (Scad).
The report said the average inflation rate in consumer prices for the period January-May 2010, compared to the same period of 2009, was 2.33 per cent, as evident from the advance in the CPI for the period January-May to 117.81 points, up from 115.12 points over the same period in 2009.
The percentage month-to-month rise in the CPI for May 2010 compared to April 2010 was 0.28 per cent, from 117.89 points in April 2010 to 118.22 points in May 2010.
Scad's Statistics Division explained the 2.33 per cent rise in consumer prices over the first five months of 2010 compared to the same period of 2009, reflected the net change in the basket of consumer prices (upward and downward movement) during the two periods.
According to the report, the "housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels" group was the top contributor to the overall increase in prices during the first five months of 2010, accounting for 84.6 per cent of that increase. This contribution resulted from a surge of 5.2 per cent in the prices of this group and due the group's sizable weight, which constitutes 37.9 per cent of the total weight of all expenditure groups. The main factor underlying the increase in the average prices of this group was the rise of 5.8 per cent in house rents, which make up 87.7 per cent of the total weight of this group.
The next highest contributor to the overall increase in the CPI over the period January-May 2010 was the food and non-alcoholic beverages group, which accounted for 26.8 per cent of the rise in the index, due to increases in the prices of most of the subgroups falling under this group, namely sugar, jam, honey, chocolate and confectionery, which shot up 34.1 per cent, while meat prices grew by 10.3 per cent, pulses by 6.6 per cent, foods not elsewhere classified by 2.9 per cent, coffee, tea and cocoa by 2.7 per cent and fruits by 2.6 per cent.
Some of the main groups that slowed down consumer prices during the first five months include clothing and footwear group, which contributed -32.9 per cent to the change in prices.