The Average Annual Inflation Rate was 2.6% for 2024

The average inflation for 2024, is 2.6 percent as the third quarter recorded the highest quarterly movement of 4.1 percent. The 2.6 percent represents an increase in the overall index, driven mainly by higher prices for education, communication, health, housing and utilities, clothing and footwear, food and non-alcoholic beverages and miscellaneous goods and services.

The fourth quarter inflation rate was 2.9 percent, and among the main contributors was a 14.3 percent rise in the education index. The main contributors to the increase in the education index were a 20.8 percent rise in the cost of pre primary and primary education, a 13.0 percent increase in secondary education and a 5.9 percent upward movement in tertiary education.

There was also an 12.3 percent rise in the communication index, a 5.8 percent upward movement in transport, a 5.7 percent rise in restaurants and hotels, a 4.3 percent increase in health, a 3.5 percent rise in food and non alcoholic beverages, and a 2.2 percent rise in miscellaneous goods and services.

The 12.3 percent increase in the communication index was largely due to the 14.1 percent rise in the index for telephone and telefax services.

A comparison of the fourth quarter of 2024 with the third quarter of 2024 indicates that the CPI rose by 0.5 percent, as the index for communication went up by 4.3 percent, education by 4.3 percent, transport increased by 2.1 percent, and food and non alcoholic beverages by 1.1 percent.

More information from the Cayman Islands’ Consumer Price Index Report: October to December 2024 may be downloaded from www.eso.ky